SSAOST3: Growing Family
by The Needless Lobsters
Summary: After two years of being a happily married couple, life couldn't be more perfect for Tony and Ziva... or could it? Sequel to SSAOST2: The Story Continued, and third in the SSAOST series.
1. Reintroducing The Family

**Hey guys! Welcome back! This is third in the SSAOST series, and I thought I'd give you the first chapter today. This is like an introduction back to the characters, and it's set two years after 'SSAOST2: The Story Continued'.**  
><strong>Oh, and I'd like to mention a special thank you to <span>'Almost A Teacher'<span> for her French translations.**

**Well, enjoy the chapter!**

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><p>Tony groaned as the light from the corridor hit his eyes, waking him up from his sleep. He opened his eyes to see the bedroom door creak open.<p>

'Who is it now?' he thought as he looked over at his alarm. It was 2 am. He closed his eyes and lay back, hoping to fall back asleep, when he heard a pitter-patter of feet on his carpeted bedroom floor. He was about to drift off when he heard a voice.

"Daddy?"

He turned on his bedside lamp and sat up, rubbing his eyes as he looked for the origin of the voice. Two pairs of bright green eyes were staring up at him. He sighed.

"Yes?"

"Bad dweam."

It was then that he noticed Kate was hugging her green teddy bear – Snuggles, as she insisted Tony called him – and TJ was clutching her embroidered blue blanket. Wondering why he hadn't heard them on the baby monitor, Tony swung his feet off the bed and lifted the twins up, laying them next to a sleeping Ziva. She opened one eye when she felt the bed move.

"Tony?" She looked up at him.

"The twins had nightmares," he told her as he tucked the comforter around the girls. Ziva nodded and fell back asleep. The twins started up at him with sleepy eyes.

"Go to sleep girls," he whispered as he kissed their foreheads. The little girls complied, closing their eyes and snuggling closer to each other and their mother. Tony waited until their breaths evened out before lying back down and turning off the lamp. He smiled as he felt TJ's hand move onto his chest before falling asleep himself.

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><p>Tony woke up the next morning to two girls bouncing on his bed. He groaned.<p>

"TJ, Kate, fermarlo ora, _**(stop it now)**_" he ordered.

"Svegliarsi, il papà, la veglia su! _**(Wake up, daddy, wake up!)**_" TJ yelled in Italian.

"Oui, lèves-toi papa! _**(Yes, get up, daddy!)**_" Kate added in French. Tony turned on his back and groggily opened one eye. He glared at the little girls. They froze.

"Oh oh, tu l'as reveille! _**(Uh oh, you woke him up!)**_" Kate whispered to TJ.

"Era la tua idea! _**(It was your idea!)**_" TJ protested.

"Non, c'était la tienne. _**(No, it was yours.)**_" Kate pointed out. TJ bit her lip.

"Oh si, _**(Oh yeah)**_" TJ murmured.

They watched as Tony slowly got up and stretched, eying the little girls as he did so. The little girls slowly backed off the bed and stepped towards the door. Tony watched the girls and grinned.

"Come here," he beckoned. The girls shook their heads. He motioned for them to come over. They shook their heads again. That when he decided to get off the bed. The girls watched him with wide eyes. Tony took one step towards them.

"Fuyons!_** (Flee!)**_" Kate yelled before the girls went screaming down the corridor. Tony laughed and chased them down the stairs, roaring and pretending to be a monster as he did so. Finally he chased the girls into the kitchen where Ziva was making breakfast.

"Mommy, mommy!" they cried as they hid behind her legs. Ziva couldn't help but chuckle when she saw Tony run into the kitchen.

"Did you wake daddy up again?" she asked the twins.

"No!" they cried.

"Liars!" Tony pointed at them. "You will pay!" The girls screamed and hid further behind Ziva's legs.

"Tony, not now. It is breakfast time," Ziva scolded.

"But–"

"Maria! Venir ici, en vite! Ton petit-dejeuner c'est prêt! _**(Come here, quick! Your breakfast is ready!)**_" Ziva shouted up the stairs.

"J'arrive! _**(I'm coming!)**_" was the response as Maria came bounding down the stairs. "Bonjour! _**(Good morning!)**_" she greeted as she sat at the table and grabbed her breakfast.

"Not if you got woken up," Tony pointed out as he sat to eat his own breakfast. Ziva sat the twins in their highchairs.

"You would have slept in late otherwise," Ziva pointed out.

"But I'm tired."

"Hey, at least we're all happy," Maria pointed out. "One big happy family."

Tony smiled. She was right. It was just over two months until his and Ziva's second wedding anniversary, on 17th July, and it was one week until the twins' third birthday. They'd been pretty happy so far, with minimal arguments – mainly on Maria's part, since she was sixteen – and more overall productivity around the house.

"Tony, you know my seventeenth birthday's coming up…" Maria hinted.

"You aren't getting a car," Tony said bluntly.

"What's the point of passing driver's ed if you don't have a car to drive!" she yelled at him.

"Shush! I eating!" TJ scolded Maria, pointing her spoon at the teenager. Everyone laughed.

"Yup, one big happy family," Tony said proudly.

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	2. Oh The Joys Of Children

**Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

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><p><strong>JUNE<strong>

Ziva smiled as she watched her twin girls run into the bullpen.

"Mama! Mama!" they cried as they ran up to her desk. TJ was wearing a blue t-shirt that said 'Daddy's Girl' on it with white trousers and blue trainers, with her hair tied back in pig-tails. Kate wore the same thing, apart from the fact that her t-shirt and trainers were green and her t-shirt said 'Mommy's Girl' on it, and her hair was tied back in a French plait. Ziva smiled and picked them up, setting them on her lap.

"How was your day today?" she asked.

"Isn't that my question, DiNozzo?"

The twins leapt off Ziva's lap. "Grandpa Gibbs!" They leapt onto his lap and grinned up at him.

"Hey girls, how was your day today?" Gibbs asked, grinning down at the twins.

"It was fun!" Kate yelled.

"We got to pway in da sand-box!" TJ told him. "And I made a san'castle!"

"An' then, an' then, an' then miss let us pway in da park in da playgwound, and TJ pushed me into da mud!" Kate frowned at her little sister, who was grinning like mad. It was then that Ziva noticed the mud covering their trousers and shirts, and covering their hair. She groaned inwardly. She was going to have to wash those, then give them a long bath.

"So, have you two been good girls today?" Gibbs asked, smirking as he already knew the answer.

"Yes!" TJ answered for herself and her sister.

"TJ hasn't," Kate interjected.

"Yes I have!"

"Well, if you haven't been good girls today, then I don't think I can give you your 'good girl' treats," Gibbs said thoughtfully. The little girls gasped.

"Pwease, pwease can we have our tweats?" Kate begged.

"Yeah! I be a good girl tomowwow!" TJ added. Gibbs smiled.

"Oh, alright," he sighed, earning smiled from the little girls. He was about to reach into his drawer to get out the girls' treats when he heard a throat being cleared. He looked up to see Ziva glaring at him.

"No," she stated. The twins pouted.

"Pwease, momma? Pwetty pwease?" Kate begged.

"No."

"But momma…" TJ whined.

"I said no, Tali. That is my final answer."

The twins pouted and slowly slid off their Grandpa's lap, walking slowly towards their mother. Suddenly, the elevator opened, and the twins' faces lit up when they saw their father walk into the bullpen.

"Daddy!" They ran up to him and hugged his legs tightly. Tony smiled.

"Hey, there are my little angels," he said as he lifted them both up. They giggled.

"Daddy, momma says we can't have Gwampa Gibbs' tweat," Kate told him.

"Yeah. Pwease? I'll eat all of my dinner!" TJ begged.

"An' I wiw too!" Kate added. Tony sighed and looked over to his wife, who had her eyebrows raised at him.

"You promise?" he asked the girls. They both nodded eagerly. He sighed.

"Oh, alright then."

The twins cheered as Tony put them down on the floor, and they ran up to their 'grandfather' happily for their treats. Tony grinned at Ziva.

"You'd better hold them to their promises, Tony, because otherwise I will kill you," she threatened.

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><p>Maria smiled as she watched Ziva join her on the edge of her bed, watching her do her final piece of homework.<p>

"Are you nearly done?" Ziva asked. Maria wrote her final sentence before putting her papers into her bag.

"I'm done now," she pointed out. Ziva smiled at her.

"That is good. I felt like talking to you."

"You never feel like talking to me like this unless I'm in trouble…" Maria feigned shock. "I'm not in trouble am I? What do you want to talk about?"

Ziva rolled her eyes at her. "I do not know. I just felt like talking."

"About…?"

"Girl… stuff…" Ziva told her, a bit hesitant about her response. Maria smiled.

"What kind of girl stuff?" she teased. Ziva glared at her.

"I just felt like talking," she admitted. "Tony isn't someone I'd like to talk to for comfort reasons." Maria nodded knowingly.

"Ok, how've you been, then?" Maria asked.

"You are talking to me as if you have not seen me in a while," Ziva said. Maria raised an eyebrow at her.

"I have been quite fine, I admit. My mornings have not been perfect, though. Last week, I felt tired all the time, and for the past week I have been throwing up in the morning…" Ziva trailed off when she realized what she said. Maria stared at her.

"You aren't…" Maria started.

"No! I cannot be! I… I…" Ziva tried to defend herself.

"If it happens again, you have to get a test, Ziva," Maria warned.

"I am worried. I have not yet woken Tony up about my vomiting, but I am afraid he will, and he might jump to conclusions. I mean, I might just have a stomach insect."

"Firstly, it's a stomach bug, Ziva. Secondly, it won't matter if Tony finds out, either way you will be forced to get a pregnancy test. And thirdly, shouldn't you know Tony enough that he won't jump to conclusions? He might already know about you being sick in the mornings," Maria pointed out. Ziva sighed.

"You always make a good point, Maria," Ziva sighed, lying back on Maria's bed. Maria laughed and joined Ziva.

"I do, don't I? Maybe it's a family thing…"

"Or maybe you are not my full sister. Father was never like you."

Maria gasped. "Don't say that! Dad was always like me! You just weren't around to see it!"

Ziva sat up. "You never met Tali, did you?" she asked suddenly. Maria looked over at her.

"No, but why the sudden change of subject?"

"You are a lot like her – nothing like father, but rebellious and fun loving like mother used to be." Ziva sighed. "I have not seen mother in a while. She refused to see me after Tali… how is she?"

"She's good… I think. I haven't spoken to her in two years. Those three-year-old monsters you call 'children' have tortured me so much I never have much time to myself anymore."

Ziva laughed at Maria's remarks.

"So, are you gonna get the test today, or not?" Maria asked, changing the subject.

"I do not know. I will get it tomorrow, but not today. It is getting late now." Ziva looked out of the window to see it was already getting a little darker, although it was 8 pm in the middle of the summer.

"Are the twins asleep?" Maria asked. There was a squeal from the corridor, and suddenly Maria's bedroom door burst open and the two little girls ran in. They were both stark naked, soaking wet, and their hair was let down to their shoulders. They looked exactly identical; apart from the little fringe that TJ had that had fallen into her green eyes. Ziva sighed and looked over at Maria, who was trying to hide a smirk. Just then Tony ran into the room, soaking wet and covered in soap. Ziva couldn't help but laugh as his hair stuck to his head, and his clothes were soaked right through.

"Next time, you bath them!" Tony gasped before grabbing the giggling girls and taking them back to the bathroom. Maria smiled.

"Oh, the joys of children," she said. Ziva laughed.

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	3. I Think I Am

**Hello readers! Here's the next chapter to the story. I hope you like it!**

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><p>When she had finished checking to make sure the bathroom door was locked and her husband was busy, Ziva dialed a number.<p>

"_Hello?_" a tired voice answered on the other line.

"Hello, Andy," Ziva greeted.

"_Hey, Ziva. What's up? Are the twins ok?_" Andy asked.

"Yes, they are. How are you?"

"_Tired. Very tired._"

"I did not wake you up, did I?" Ziva was worried.

"_No. I'm lying on the sofa watching TV. I can't be asked to go to bed at only eight o'clock._" Ziva calmed down and smiled.

"You should be getting your rest, you know," she pointed out.

"_Don't lecture me. Tired equals snappy. David learned that the hard way._"

Ziva laughed. "All right then. I was just giving you some useful advice. I speak from experience."

"_Ziva, did you call me just to lecture me? Because I have a husband for that._"

"No, I called to ask you for advice."

"_Really?_" Ziva could tell that Andy was really interested in what she was about to say.

"Yes. Um… Andy?" She heard Andy sigh.

"_Yes, Ziva?_"

"I think I'm pregnant."

"_Are you sure?_"

"No."

"_Then go get a damn pregnancy test and stop bugging me!_"

"Andy, I know you are tired, but listen to my dilemma. If I was pregnant, I would end up hiding the pregnancy test or something like that. Me being pregnant may send Tony into shock. And if Tony snuck around and found it, then he would have a go at me. I do not want that to happen."

"_Then explain to __**him**__ what is happening and ask for __**his**__ advice. He'd tell you the exact same thing I'm telling you now – get a damn pregnancy test!_"

"You have been no help, Andy."

"_Yes I have. I've given you my advice. If you follow it, life will turn out fine. And don't bother calling Mukta – her pregnancy's taking a toll on her as well._" Andy told her. Ziva sighed.

"Thank you anyway, Andy."

"_You're very welcome. See ya soon, yeah?_"

"Of course, Andy." She ended the call.

Ziva groaned and leaned back on the bathroom door, closing her eyes to think. Suddenly, there was a knock on the bathroom door.

"Hey, Zi? You in there?" Tony called from the other side of the door. Ziva sighed.

"Yes, I am," she answered.

"Can I come in?" he asked. Ziva frowned.

"Why?"

"I need to pee!"

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><p>Tony woke up at one am to the sound of retching coming from his ensuite bathroom. He sleepily sat up and swung his feet over the edge, yawning as he did so. He wasn't exactly expecting to see Ziva retching in the bathroom, but it helped his theory based on her behavior. He kneeled down beside her and held her hair back.<p>

"You ok, Zi?" he asked.

"No, I feel terrible," she answered as she lifted her head up to look at him. Tony could tell from her eyes that she was exhausted.

"How long have you been up?" he asked, concerned, rubbing her back soothingly. She shrugged and took deep breaths, leaning back from the toilet and into Tony's arms. She started sobbing when she fell into Tony's embrace. Tony looked down at her.

"Honey, what's wrong?" he asked.

"I… I think I'm… pregnant…" Ziva whispered in between the sobs. Tony stroked her hair lovingly.

"That's nothing to be worried or cry about, Ziva," he told her.

"But what if it goes wrong? What if worse things than what happened in the last one happen?" Ziva asked.

"Ziva, that was all my fault. I'm here now, and nothing bad will happen."

"Promise?"

Tony frowned at her. "Ziva, you've known me long enough that I can't keep promises like this, what with my job and all. I'll be here as much as I can." He kissed her forehead. "I love you, Ziva."

Before Ziva could reply, her head was back in the toilet and she was retching again. I rubbed her back in a soothing fashion and held her hair back for her. She took deep breaths as she sat back again.

"I hate being pregnant," she groaned.

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><p>Kate and TJ quietly crept into their parents' room, fully prepared to wake them up by jumping on their bed. TJ was prepared to annoy her father again, whilst Kate was only there to watch. She was also there to stop her sister from injuring someone, which she tended to do quite a bit.<p>

They snuck up to the bed quietly, only to find nobody sleeping in it. TJ cocked her head, confused. "Where daddy?"

Kate looked over at the ensuite bathroom door and tried opening it, only to find it locked. She put her ear to the door and heard some snoring coming from inside. "TJ! In da bafwoom!"

TJ walked up to the door and started banging on it loudly. "Daddy? Daddy!"

Kate attempted to pull her sister away from the door. "'Top it, TJ! Daddy seepin'!" Kate scolded her younger sister. TJ froze and stopped hammering on the door.

"Oh." She started the hammering again. "Daddy! Are you aseep?"

Suddenly, the lock on the door turned, and a disheveled Tony appeared. Kate took a step back, whilst her sister smiled up at their father.

"I'm not asleep any more, Tali," Tony groaned. "If you want breakfast, go and ask Auntie Maria. She'll make you something to eat."

The twins grinned and ran off to find their aunt. Tony rolled his eyes. That was just for food?

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	4. Getting The Test And The Results

**Hey guys! Here's the next chapter! Sorry for not updating sooner...**

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><p>Ziva took a deep breath as she sat in the car, just staring at the store opposite them.<p>

"Ziva, this isn't something to be scared of – you've done it before," Tony reassured her.

"Yes, but at that time I did not also have a family to support. This could affect the twins…"

"What, taking a pregnancy test? Do you know how ridiculous you sound, Ziva?" Tony stared at her incredulously. "Just walk in there, buy a pregnancy test and come out! It's simple!"

"If it is so simple, why don't you do it?" Ziva fought back.

"Because it's awkward when a guy has to buy a pregnancy test for his partner, especially when they're just sitting in the car park, too chicken to go in themselves," Tony teased. Ziva glared at him before opening the door and getting out of the car, slamming the door shut behind her.

Tony opened his window. "I love you, honey!" he yelled out. Ziva managed to glare at him before entering the store. Tony smiled. He loved annoying his wife.

Ziva sighed as she looked around the store, searching for the pregnancy tests. She didn't remember the last time she bought a pregnancy test. So much had happened since then…

"Aha!" She spotted the pregnancy tests and grabbed one before heading for the till. There was a short queue in front of her, and the woman standing in front of her had medium-length light brown hair and was wearing a pair of faded jeans with a pale blue t-shirt. Ziva wondered why she had even bothered looking at what she was wearing. _Maybe it's the hormones_, her mind kept saying. She sighed.

"Ziva?"

She turned to see a woman with dark hair and green eyes staring at her. Ziva smiled.

"Rebecca? What are you doing here?" she asked. Rebecca held up a pregnancy test.

"I think I'm pregnant, but I'm not sure. I guess you're here for the same reason," Rebecca pointed out, pointing at the pregnancy test in Ziva's hand. Ziva nodded.

"I am not sure what Tony would think though…"

"Did you just say 'Tony'?" the woman in front of Ziva asked, turning to look at her. That was when she recognized the woman.

"Daisy?"

Daisy smiled at her. "The one and only."

"You know, there are probably other 'Daisy's in this world, and they probably have green eyes and brown hair too," Rebecca pointed out.

"Oh, you know what I meant," Daisy smiled. "So, you two are buying pregnancy tests here?" We both nodded.

"Wow, we're probably all pregnant then."

"I bid the men good luck," Ziva smiled. The trio laughed.

"Next customer!" the young lady at the till called out.

"Well, that's me," Daisy sighed. "See you around, girls." She headed over to the till.

"I wonder how the men would cope if we were all pregnant…" Rebecca thought out loud.

"They would suffer," Ziva said simply.

"I'd pay to watch that."

Once Ziva had paid for her pregnancy test, she headed out of the shop and sat in the car. She smiled at her husband as he started the car.

"You got the test?" Tony asked.

"Yes. And guess who I saw when I was getting it?" She grinned.

"Who?"

"Rebecca _and_ Daisy!"

Tony nearly slammed his foot on the brakes. "Both of them?"

"Yes."

"_Both_ of them?"

"I think that is what I said."

"_Both of them_?"

Ziva sighed. "Yes Tony, both of them."

Tony raised his eyebrows. "We're gonna make our neighborhood hell."

Tony sat in the living room and watched the staircase, waiting for Ziva to come down. She had been up there about five minutes already, and he was getting impatient.

"Ziva! Are you ok up there?" he called out.

"Just peaches, Tony!" she called back.

"It's 'peachy' Ziva, 'PEACHY'!"

"What is?"

Tony groaned. "Never mind!" He sat back on the sofa and closed his eyes, trying to relax his nerves.

"Daddy?"

He opened his eyes to see TJ standing there, holding a blue teddy bear.

"Yes, Tali?" he sighed.

"Wha' doin'?" she asked, curiosity evident in her voice.

"Relaxing."

"Oh." She paused for a few seconds. "What we… we… we–"

"Relaxing?"

"Yeah, dat."

"Uh…" He thought for a few seconds. "It's like sleeping, but you aren't. You just close your eyes."

"Oh!" TJ skipped out of the room towards the playroom. Tony just went back to his impatient waiting, watching the stairs for when Ziva would come down. Suddenly there was a loud thump upstairs and she came rushing down, plotting on his lap. He grunted.

"Ziva, could you at least be a little gentle?" he groaned.

"Do you want a baby?" she asked him, looking him straight in the eye. Tony froze. _What?_

"Excuse me, what?" he asked.

"Do you want a baby?" she asked again, slowly this time. He stared at her.

"We're… having a baby?"

Ziva nodded. Tony's face broke into a smile and he suddenly leapt up and swung Ziva around in his arms. Ziva laughed as she was spun around, causing Maria to walk into the room curiously.

"What's going on?" she asked. Tony smiled as he put Ziva down, but kept his arm wrapped around his wife's waist. Ziva just beamed at her younger sister.

"Maria," she smiled.

"Yes?" Maria sighed. "Spit it out."

"I'm pregnant."

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><p><strong>Hope you liked it. Review!<strong>


	5. Babies, More Babies, And Dummies?

**Hey readers! Here's the next chapter! Enjoy!**

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><p>Ziva pulled the phone away from her ear, so that she wouldn't be deafened by the squealing coming from the other end. Why she had decided to tell Abby over the phone rather than at work, she had no idea. When she thought the squealing had finally stopped, she put the phone back on her ear.<p>

"Abby? Are you still there?" she asked timidly.

"Yes! Of course I'm still here! I can't believe you're pregnant! Well, actually I can, because you're married and it was bound to happen some time… but still! Oh-my-gosh! Congratulations! This is amazing! I'm gonna be an aunt again!" Abby squealed over the phone again.

"Abby, could you please lower your voice – I can hear you perfectly over here," Ziva told her best friend.

"Sorry. It's just… so exciting!"

"I know, Abby."

"Kate and TJ are gonna have a sibling!"

"I know, Abby."

"And it's not just you – Rebecca's having a kid too!"

"I kn- wait, she's pregnant?"

"Yeah!"

Ziva smiled. "What about Daisy?"

"I'm not sure, but–" All Abby heard was the clatter of the phone falling to the floor as Ziva raced out of the house. "Ziva? Ziva!"

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><p>Ziva raced up the driveway to her neighbor's house, knocking frantically on the front door until it was opened to reveal an annoyed Jude. A very annoyed Jude.<p>

"Yes?" he asked.

"No hello?" Ziva asked cheekily.

"Ziva, I've got lesson plans to be doing…"

"Is Daisy home?"

"Yeah, she's in the living room." He let her inside, shutting the door behind her. Ziva walked into the living room, smiling when she saw Daisy sprawled on the sofa reading a book.

"Daisy?"

Daisy looked up at the sound of her name and smiled at Ziva. "Hey, Ziva."

"It was positive, wasn't it?"

Daisy smiled and nodded. Ziva smiled and hugged her.

"Congratulations!"

Daisy smiled at Ziva. "You too!"

Ziva pulled back. "How did you…"

"You aren't usually this jumpy."

"Oh."

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><p>Maria sat staring at the couple sitting opposite her impassively, wonder what the heck she was doing there. "What the heck am I doing here?" she asked.<p>

"We're having a family meeting," Tony replied, watching the stairs to see when his little girls would come down.

"Since when did we have family meetings?" Maria asked.

"Since now."

"Well you might as well put up a weekly bulletin board whilst you're at it. 'Today's news! Maria's got a softball match! Kate and TJ have been rolling in the mud again! Tony did something special last night – he ma–"

"Alright, that's enough Maria," Ziva cut her off. "We do not need to know what exactly Tony did last night."

"Momma! Momma!" The twins ran into the living room. "Look!" TJ held out the pregnancy test. "We find dis in bafwoom!"

Tony glared at Ziva. "You didn't put it away?"

"I forgot about their inherited curiosity," Ziva said, giving herself an excuse. She held out her hand to TJ. "Give it to me." TJ handed her the test.

"Go sit down you two," Tony commanded. The twins did as he said, seating themselves on the sofa beside Maria.

"Why we here?" Kate asked.

"Because Mommy and Daddy need to tell you something very important," Tony explained. The little girls suddenly looked interested, whilst Maria didn't even look impressed.

"Well?" she asked.

Tony smiled at them. "We're gonna have a baby."

Maria smiled. "I knew it!"

"That was because we told you, Maria."

"A baby?" Kate asked. Tony and Ziva nodded.

"You are going to have a little sister or brother," Ziva told her. Both the girls' faces lit up.

"Yay!"

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><p>Tony quietly opened his bedroom door, expecting his wife to be asleep.<p>

"Tony, you can open the door fully, you know?"

Tony chuckled as he opened the door to find his wife sitting up in bed, reading a book. Ziva had her hair tied back in a ponytail, and was wearing a sleeveless top with a pair of loose shorts. Tony took off his shirt as he headed towards the bed.

"So, what are you reading?" he asked, his question slightly muffled by the shirt over his head.

"A book," Ziva answered simply.

Tony pulled the shirt off his head. "I can see that. I want to know what exactly you're…" He peered at the book's title. "'Pregnancy for Dummies'? You're reading a pregnancy book? For Dummies?" He stared incredulously at his wife. "Where did you get this?"

"Walmart. I ordered it online when I had the twins." She picked something off her bedside table and tossed it at him. "Here – I got one for you as well."

Tony read the title. "_Dad's Guide to Pregnancy For Dummies_? How dumb do you think I am?"

Ziva raised an eyebrow at him, and he got the gist.

"I don't want to know, do I?" he asked. Ziva shook her head. Tony sighed and placed the book on the table beside his side of the bed and stripped down to his boxers. He lay down on his side of the bed and pulled the comforter up to his neck, facing away from Ziva. After a few minutes of trying to sleep, he sighed and turned over to find Ziva still reading.

"Ziva, would you stop reading that book and go to sleep?" he asked irritably.

Ziva looked up from her book. "I am not tired."

"You will be tomorrow if you don't sleep now, because I know for a fact that you hate Mondays."

"Tony, you do not even like Mondays, so how can you tell I do not?"

Tony shrugged, but was looking at his wife with pleading eyes. "Please? Sleep?"

Ziva sighed and put the book down, turning off her bedside lamp. She snuggled close to her husband under the covers and smiled as he wrapped his arms around her.

"Ziva?"

She turned slightly. "Yes?"

"I love you," Tony whispered.

Ziva turned to face him fully. "I love you too." She kissed him lightly before laying her head against his chest and falling asleep. Tony smiled and kissed her forehead, falling asleep not long afterwards.

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	6. Spreading the News

**Hey readers! I decided that from this chapter onwards, I'll write how far along Ziva is at the beginning. If I don't, then it's during the same week as the previous chapter.  
>Enjoy!<strong>

**WARNING: Brief mention of sex - chapter is rated between T and M  
><strong>

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><p><strong>8 weeks<strong>

"She's what?"

Tony sighed as he prepared to say his sentence again. "Ziva's pregnant."

"But how… actually, scratch that, what's Gibbs gonna think?"

"He technically can't do anything – we're married. We're allowed to have sex once in a while."

"Tony, did you have to be so blunt about it?"

"Yes, McTwenty-Questions, yes I did."

McGee rolled his eyes at his coworker. "Tony, would you quit it with the names?"

Tony thought about it for a second. "How about 'no'?"

McGee glared at him.

"Alright, alright, I'll cut it down a bit. Jeez, it was a joke, McGee."

"Sure it was."

"Would you two please stop arguing?" Ziva yelled as she walked into the bullpen. "You're giving everyone else a headache!"

"How would you know? You've been in the toilets this whole time!" Tony exclaimed. Ziva cuffed the back of his head.

"Be quiet. You got me into this mess."

"Actually, that is very true," McGee pointed out. Tony glared at him.

"Shut up, McGee. Just wait until you get someone pregnant." Tony smirked. "It'll probably be Abby by the way people have seen you two coming out of the supply closets for the past month."

"Tony!"

"What?"

* * *

><p>Ziva waited patiently for the phone to be answered on the other line. It rang twice before it was answered.<p>

"_Hello, Georgetown University Hospital, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, how may we help you?_"

"Hello, I would like to make an appointment with Dr Matthew Hudson?" she asked. She heard some tapping on the other line.

"_Alright. Is there any day that is preferable for you…_"

"Mrs DiNozzo."

"_Mrs DiNozzo?_"

"I was called Miss David when I last visited the hospital."

"_Oh, Mrs DiNozzo! It's been a while!_"

Ziva smiled. "Yes. I do not mind what day it is, as long as it is not a Saturday, and I would like it to be around twelve or one in the afternoon?"

"_Ok…_" There was a pause on the other line as the receptionist typed into the computer. "_There are two appointments available this week – one for Wednesday at twelve thirty in the afternoon, and one for Friday at one thirty. Are either of these alright for you?_"

"Uh…" Ziva thought about it. If they had a case, Gibbs probably wouldn't let her out. The sooner she had the appointment, the better. "I will take the Wednesday appointment, thank you."

There was another pause at the other end of the line. "_Ok, Mrs DiNozzo, you have an appointment on Wednesday at twelve thirty. The details should be sent to you through the mail._"

"Thank you." Ziva ended the call and sat back in her chair, sighing.

"Hey! David!"

Ziva looked up at the call of her maiden name.

"Get on with your paperwork!" Gibbs barked at her before sitting at his own desk.

Ziva sighed and got on with it before realizing something. She hadn't told him. She stood up and cautiously headed over to his desk. "Uh, Gibbs?"

"Yeah, Ziva?" He looked up at his female agent expectantly, peering over the edges of his glasses. She took a deep breath.

"I'm pregnant."

"I know."

Ziva was startled. "You know?"

"DiNozzo's been suffering for the past week with your mood swings, Ziva."

Ziva's eyebrows shot up. "I had mood swings?"

Gibbs smirked. "You didn't notice, but we all did."

Ziva cringed inwardly. He had probably known all this time? "Why did Tony think I was having mood swings?"

"He said the twins had been keeping you two up all night."

Ziva smiled. Typical Tony. She sat down at her desk before smiling at Gibbs. "Thank you for listening to me, Gibbs."

* * *

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	7. Boy or Girl, And What?

**More than one update in one day!  
>Enjoy!<strong>

* * *

><p>Ziva lay back on the bed as the gel was placed on her bare stomach. Tony held her hands and rubbed the backs of them soothingly, ignoring the smile that Dr Hudson was giving them. Matt placed the wand on Ziva's belly, moving it around to see the baby. Suddenly, something appeared on the screen and Ziva and Tony both smiled.<p>

"There's your baby," Matt explained. "They seem to be growing healthily. If you get another appointment for about four weeks' time, we'll be able to get the gender."

Ziva nodded and accepted the tissue that was handed to her.

"Would you like some pictures?" Matt asked. Tony shrugged.

"Sure."

Matt smiled. "You should be able to get them at the receptionist's desk."

"Thanks." Tony helped his wife off the desk. "Oh, and congratulations."

Matt smiled at Tony. "You too, bro."

* * *

><p>Ziva smiled over at her husband as they drove back to the Navy Yard. She placed her hand on top of his as he held onto the steering wheel. Tony looked over at her briefly and smiled.<p>

"Somebody's happy," he grinned. Ziva laughed.

"We are going to have a healthy baby!" she exclaimed. "And it is going to be a beautiful little girl!"

"Nuh-uh!" Tony retorted. "It's gonna be a boy! We already have too many girls in the house."

Ziva chuckled. "We do not have too many girls in the house. We could have a boy, but I would prefer another girl. From my experience living with a male, they seem too much hard work." She gave Tony a pointed look. Tony spluttered as he pulled into a parking space.

"I'm not that bad!"

"That is what you think." Ziva winked at Tony as she got out of the car, grabbing her bag and heading straight for the building. Tony sighed and got out, locking the car behind him and following his wife up to the bullpen. As soon as they got in, they both sat at their desks. McGee greeted them before getting on with his paperwork.

The bullpen was silent for a few minutes before _The Way You Look Tonight_ by Frank Sinatra was blaring. Ziva blushed as she picked up her phone and answered it, realizing it was from Abby.

"Hi Abby, what is it?..." Ziva got a shocked look on her face. "Abby?... Ab… Abby, calm down... I'll be there in a second... yes, I promise…I'll bring that too." She ended her call and literally ran down to the lab, scaring both Tony and McGee with what seemed like enthusiasm.

After a few moments of shocked silence, McGee finally spoke up.

"Uh, Tony?"

"Yeah, McGee?"

"What just happened?"

"I do not know."

The men went back to their work before McGee walked over to Tony's desk. "Hey, Tony?"

"Yeah, McGee?"

"Uh, how should I propose to Abby?"

Tony stared up in shock at the younger man. "You're gonna propose to Abby?" He started to chuckle. "You? Propose to Abby?"

McGee frowned at Tony. "That's what I said."

"I have three words for you, McGoo – don't do it. Everyone knows you're gonna screw it up."

McGee was glaring at his teammate by then. "I am not! Besides, I was thinking of using the song _Marry You_ by Bruno Mars."

"Ok, there are two things wrong with that statement. Firstly, you can't even sing. Secondly, I don't even want to know how you know about some guy called 'Bruno Mars'."

"You can ask Maria about it. And I was gonna play her the song, you moron!"

"Oh, all right. No need to get snappy, Mc–"

"Shut up, Tony. Don't insult me."

Tony stared in shock at his younger teammate before smiling. "Aw! McGoo's all grown up!"

"Tony?"

"Yeah big fella?"

"Shut the hell up."

Suddenly, Tony's office phone rang. He answered it quickly. "Very Special Agent DiNozzo on the line, how may I help you?" There was a worried shouting over the line and Tony had to pull the phone away from his ear for a few seconds before retuning to calm the person down. "Ok, start from the top…" Tony's eyes widened as the person was rambling on the other line. "MCGEE!"

McGee looked up worriedly from his desk to his coworker. "Yeah Tony?"

"What did you do?" Tony ground out. McGee stared at him, shocked.

"W-w-what do you m-m-mean?" he stuttered.

"Don't play dumb! You know what you did!" Tony stood menacingly and towered over the cowering agent. "What did you do?"

"I d-d-don't know!" McGee stammered in response.

"Well Abby's crying!" Tony yelled.

McGee stared at him, mouth agape. "What? Why?"

"I don't know! That's why I'm asking you!"

McGee frowned. "Why do you assume it was me?"

Tony sighed and rolled his eyes. "Well McGee, you're not exactly a babe magnet, and you do have the tendency to say the wrong thing."

"Well, I know that because you've told me lots of times, but you can't just assume it was something I did!"

"McGee, if you have done something to Abby, I swear I'll–"

"Tony! I don't even know what I might've done! Why are you assuming it's my fault?"

"Because she's pregnant, McGee!" Both men turned to stare at who had shouted it out, and it was none other than Ziva.

"P-p-p-pregnant?" McGee stared at Ziva in shock. Ziva nodded.

"Oh boy – Gibbs is gonna kill someone," Tony muttered.

* * *

><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	8. Confirming The 'What'

**Sorry for the short chapter. It's kind of like a filler, but it's not, if you get what I mean.  
>Enjoy!<strong>

* * *

><p>McGee walked cautiously into the lab, making sure that there was no one behind him ready to attack. He looked around the room cautiously before recognizing someone sitting in a swivel chair in the back office. He walked through to it.<p>

"Abby?" he called out. The Goth looked up at him with red eyes.

"Oh, hey Timmy," she said a little tiredly. McGee walked into the room awkwardly.

"Hey Abby." There was an awkward silence. "Abby, I'm so sorry…"

Abby put her hand up to silence him. "Don't worry, I'm not upset – just shocked."

"Shocked?" McGee frowned. "Why?"

"This time your sperm decided to say hello."

McGee smiled and sat on the edge of Abby's desk. The next silence that occurred was a little more comfortable, until McGee broke it.

"I got you something."

"It's not Caf-Pow is it?" Abby stared at McGee in shock.

"No, it's not Caf-Pow."

"Good, because I can't drink it."

McGee smiled as he pulled out a velvet box. It wasn't a small ring box – it was more like a box someone would use for a necklace. He handed the box to Abby. Abby stared at the box in wonder with the tiniest bit of disappointment.

"What is it?" she asked curiously. McGee smiled.

"Open it."

Abby opened the box to find that there was nothing in it. There was a note on top of where the necklace would usually lay. It read: _Lift me up and you'll see your surprise_. Abby lifted the cushion in the box and gasped.

Lying underneath the box was a black ring, with a simple diamond in the middle. Attached to the ring was a piece of paper attached to a string. She quickly detached the string and picked up the note, smiling as she read it:

_Ok, originally I was gonna play you a song to get this done, but this seems so much easier. I don't want you to think that this has anything to do with me… 'knocking you up', I was gonna do this anyway.  
>Abigail Sciuto, will you marry me?<br>– McGee_

She turned to McGee, a huge smile on her face. "Yes, yes, YES!" She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. McGee smiled as he hugged her back.

And whilst this all happened, one fearless leader watched the scene unravel from the lab entrance, smiling.

* * *

><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	9. Dinner With Friends

**Here's the next chapter!  
>Enjoy!<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>10 weeks – JUNE (still)<strong>

Abby sat gleefully on the edge of Ziva's desk as she flipped through the magazines she had. Ziva was flipping through another of the magazines and stopped on a page.

"How about this hairstyle?" she asked. Abby looked over at the photo she was pointing at and grimaced.

"No way – I think that looks horrid," she said disgustedly. Ziva frowned.

"I think it looks nice," she retorted. Abby snorted.

"Of course you do, Ziva."

Ziva rolled her eyes at her best friend and continued to flick through the magazine for suitable hairstyles. She stopped on one and smirked. "How about this one?"

Abby gagged when she saw the style. "Do you _want_ me to die from curls?" Abby glared at the smirk on Ziva's face. "Why can't I just have pigtails?"

"Because you need to look different on your wedding day Abby, something to make you more beautiful." Ziva thought about what to do to Abby's hair. "Since you do not want us to curl it, maybe we should leave it straight and just curl it lightly at the ends. I am sure that will suit you. Also," Ziva added, sneaking a peak at the page Abby was looking at in her magazine, "you will not be wearing black for your wedding. It is too… depressing for what should be a happy day."

Abby pouted. "But it's my wedding!"

"And I am being helpful. I will not, under any circumstances, wear black to your wedding unless it is part of my wedding attire."

Abby sighed. "Fine. The dress has to fit, though. I'll be huge by the time it gets to my wedding."

"Are you sure you want your wedding in January, Abby?" Ziva asked uncertainly. "I will be due around that time, and you will be due not long after."

"Yes, I'm sure. Besides, you'll have had your baby by then – Andy and Mukta are due before then and Katie isn't pregnant."

"… that is a very good point."

"I know. Now, what do you think about this dress?"

* * *

><p>McGee, Abby, Ziva and Tony lounged around in the bullpen, wondering what to do after finally completing the piles of paperwork they had been handed. Ziva and Tony were currently sitting on the edge of Tony's desk, arms wrapped around each other, whilst Abby was on McGee's lap, McGee's head resting on her shoulder.<p>

"What to do, what to do…" Tony muttered for the rest of them to hear.

"We could play games," McGee suggested.

"I'm not playing any of your Elf-Lord games, McGeek." Tony glared at McGee before kissing Ziva slightly on the cheek.

"We could play Truth or Dare," Abby suggested.

"Abby, we're grown adults," McGee pointed out. "Gibbs would kill us if he caught us playing it."

"We could eat."

Everyone stared at Ziva incredulously.

"What? I am hungry!"

"Actually, she's got a point," McGee said. "We missed out lunch just to finish our paperwork. I wouldn't blame her for being hungry, especially as she is pregnant."

"We could eat out?" Abby suggested. "I think there's this great Italian restaurant about 15 minutes from here. It's called Primi Piatti. We could go there for dinner or something."

"I think that's awesome. What do you think, Ziva?" Tony asked. Ziva looked down at her belly.

"I think we are in the mood for Italian."

The four of them laughed.

"But do you not think it will be a little lonely with just us?"

Tony stared at Ziva. "What are you suggesting?"

"I am suggesting we invite our friends. It may be short notice, but we have not spoken to them in a while. Only Andy, Rebecca and Daisy know I am pregnant, and Andy and Rebecca are just suspicious. They are not absolutely sure."

Tony got out his cell phone. "Then let's do it."

* * *

><p>Ziva was looking for a top to wear when Maria walked into her room.<p>

"Hey, Zi, is it alright if I take the twins out for McDonalds with my mates?" Maria asked.

"Which friends?" Ziva asked absentmindedly as she looked for something comfortable to wear with her jeans.

"Katie and Mel… maybe Nathan…" Maria froze at Ziva's accusing look. "He has a little brother too! He's five! They'll have someone to play with!"

Ziva sighed. "Fine then. Just don't lose them."

Maria grinned. "Thanks Ziva!" She ran out of the door. "Kate! Tali! Come and get changed! We're going out!"

Ziva sighed and nearly laughed when she heard the girls squealing and running around, and Maria trying to chase after them in an effort to get them dressed. Finally, however, she found what she was looking for. It was a peach colored maternity top that Tony had gotten her not long after he had found out she was pregnant. Even though she wasn't that far along, it was still a nice top and she _was_ pregnant. She took out the top and put it on, wearing it with a pair of jeans and some cream-colored flats. She left her hair down in curls before grabbing her cardigan and heading downstairs – even though it was warm, she could still get pretty cold. Tony was waiting at the bottom of the staircase in a blue shirt and some jeans and was twirling his car keys in his right hand.

"Took ya long enough. Maria's already left, and Abby called asking where we were," Tony said as he took Ziva's hand in his and started leading her towards the car.

"What did you tell her?" Ziva asked.

"That you're taking your time, making sure you look perfect…" Tony stared at her, wide-eyed. "I _was_ telling the truth, right?"

Ziva rolled her eyes at Tony. "Unfortunately, yes."

* * *

><p>Ziva and Tony smiled as they approached the table where everyone sat.<p>

"Hey, guys!" Tony greeted. The twelve people already sitting at the table turned their heads to look at the couple.

"Hey Ziva, Tony," Jude greeted.

"How've you been?" Daisy asked as the couple sat down.

"Tired," Ziva answered. "The twins keep us on our feet."

"Especially TJ. She loves to open things and leave things scattered around the house," Tony explained further. Everyone laughed.

"And little Kate's being a good girl?" Mukta asked.

"Oh, yes," Ziva laughed. "Although she does tend to fight over toys with her sister." Everyone nodded in understanding.

After a few more minutes of idle chat, the waiter finally came over and they ordered their drinks and starters. For starters they each ordered their own meals, with wine to drink for the men and juice for the women. They continued to chat quietly until their meals were brought over. Katie frowned when she saw what Ziva had ordered.

"I know you're Jewish and all Ziva, but no seafood? I thought you loved it?" Katie said.

"No wine either," Mark pointed out.

Ziva shrugged. "I just do not want it, I suppose."

Daisy remembered and caught on quickly. "Have you told the twins yet?"

"Told the twins what?" Mukta asked. Andy's eyes widened as she finally realized what was going on.

"You're pregnant, aren't you?"

Rebecca, Jude and Matt all choked on their food. The rest, apart from Abby, McGee and Tony, just stared at her in shock.

"Pregnant?" Katie repeated. Then she scowled playfully. "Thanks for making me feel like the odd one out here, girls."

"I can't believe you held back on us, Zi," Rebecca managed to say once she had calmed down enough to talk. There were murmurs of agreement from all over the table.

"You can't be serious," Arif muttered. "Can you handle three kids under the age of five?"

"You'll have to start sending the twins to daycare, Ziva," Mukta pointed out.

"I have Maria to baby-sit from four onwards," Ziva argued. "Also, the twins have been to daycare before and they liked it. I will not struggle much."

"Three kids?" Mark asked.

"Three is not a big number."

"It is when you're counting kids. Especially when they have the DiNozzo gene."

"Shut up, Mark. Your gene's no better," Tony retorted. The whole table burst into laughter.


	10. Doctors Appointments

**Here's the next chapter, peoples.  
>Enjoy!<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>12 weeks – JULY<strong>

Ziva had her hands intertwined with Tony's as the couple sat in the waiting room, waiting to be called for Ziva's appointment. Dr Hudson was apparently on his 'lunch break', although Tony had seen him walk into the waiting area quite a few times and it seemed like they were stopping them from seeing him.

Suddenly, Matt walked into the room. Ziva was still reading her magazine even though she and Tony were holding hands and Tony was using his other hand to play Tetris on his phone. When Tony looked up, he saw Matt at the receptionist's desk, standing next to another woman. As soon as they finished talking to the receptionist, Tony recognized the woman. It was Rebecca.

"Hey, Ziva," he got her attention. Ziva looked up.

"Yes, Tony?"

"Isn't that Rebecca over there?" He pointed over to where Matt and Rebecca were standing at the receptionist's desk, kissing. Ziva laughed when she heard some wolf-whistles coming from around the waiting area. When they finally pulled apart, she noticed Matt blushing lightly as Rebecca left the hospital. As soon as she had left, Matt called out for his next patient.

"Ziva DiNozzo?"

* * *

><p>"What took you so long?"<p>

"My wife had an appointment."

"So?"

"What, a husband can't attend his wife's appointment with the midwife now? I'm gonna have to ask you to leave now, Mr DiNozzo."

"Oh… shut up."

"Hello? I am here and waiting!" Ziva interrupted the men's banter. Matt turned to Ziva with the gel.

"Sorry, Zi. _Somebody_ can't accept the fact that I have a life."

"You have a life?" Tony asked sarcastically, earning a slap from Ziva and a glare from Matt.

"Do not be so rude," she scolded her husband as Matt placed the wand on her gelled stomach. Not long after, they could hear the heartbeats of the little baby echoing in the room. Ziva smiled and grabbed Tony's hand, squeezing it gently.

"Well, the baby seems to be growing healthily…" Matt started.

"Can we find out the gender?" Ziva asked eagerly. Matt sighed.

"Nope. He or she seems determined to keep it a secret from you. They're facing away, so you can't see anything. Sorry." He glared at the screen. "Cheeky little devil."

"It's a DiNozzo thing," Tony waved aside. Ziva laughed a bit as she took the tissue that was handed to her and wiped her belly. Tony helped her off the bed and gave Matt a brief smile.

"Tell Becks we said hi," Tony said as he and Ziva headed out. Matt smiled at the nickname that Rebecca had been given for so many years.

"Sure, I will," Matt said as he waved at Tony and Ziva. "Don't forget the appointment in four weeks, and there are pictures at the reception!"

"We know!" Ziva and Tony chorused as they left the room.

* * *

><p>Ziva sat up in bed, reading her book quietly. It had become the norm that as Tony put the twins to bed with a bedtime story that would hopefully work – it didn't work all of the time – Ziva would sit in bed and read, waiting for him. Not long after she started reading, there was a knock on the door.<p>

"Come in, Maria," Ziva called out. Maria walked in, wearing a pair of blue pajamas, and sat on the bed beside Ziva.

"Hey, sis, how are you?" Maria asked.

"Maria, that is the same question you asked me when we came home today." Ziva eyes her quizzically. "What do you want?"

Maria sighed and smiled. "I just wanted to find out how my sister was…" She stopped when she saw Ziva's eyes narrowing. "Ok, so you know that cute boy, Nathan? Well, he asked me to go out with him this weekend and I kind of said yes without asking you… so?"

Ziva sighed. "Maybe."

"What? But, come on Ziva! Please? Pretty please?"

"Tony has not met him yet."

"But you have! And you a better job at scaring people off than Tony does!" Maria put on her puppy dog eyes with the matching pout. "Please?"

Ziva sighed. "Fine. But he will have to meet Tony before you leave. We want to be able to hunt him down if he kidnaps you."

"Ziva!"

"What? Men can do that!"

* * *

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	11. Surprises, and Swearing: GASP!

**Here's the next chapter, readers!**

* * *

><p><strong>32 weeks – NOVEMBER<strong>

Ziva sighed as she lounged on the sofa in the living room lazily, watching a random movie.

She was now seven months pregnant, being in her eighth month and all, and things couldn't get any more boring. She was rarely allowed in the office, if Tony had anything to say about it, and even when she was in office, Gibbs would only let her look through cold cases or do the team's paperwork. She wasn't allowed down into the lab during a case, although neither was Abby since she was also quite far along, and there was even a new lab tech called Julie who was very preserved and only spoke to the team during cases. That meant whenever Ziva had finished the paperwork, she and Abby would end up sitting in the break room discussing the wedding, and there was always someone who would come and disturb them. She wasn't even allowed into interrogation, and if she did go in she was only allowed to watch for a few minutes before her back started aching.

Of course, it wasn't all that bad. She still dragged Tony to Lamaze classes, and every once in a while she was able to force him to take her to the pool. She'd even managed to drag him shopping to get the paint for the baby's room, as well as for a new dresser and some baby clothes, and made him paint it. She smirked. '_I should make Tony suffer more often,_' she thought.

When Ziva heard the hum of a car pulling up outside, she couldn't stop the smile that came onto her face as she got up and waddled to the door to open it. Immediately, she was greeted by hugs that only reached her legs.

"Momma!"

Ziva chuckled as she looked down at the twins smiling up at her. "Hello, mis princesas _**(my princesses)**_," she greeted.

"Hola mamá _**(Hello mommy)**_," they greeted before running through the living room into the playroom.

"Play nicely!" Ziva called out before moving aside to let Maria in. Maria smiled briefly at her older sister before heading straight upstairs to her room with a scowl on her face.

"School was good, if you were wondering!" Maria called out sarcastically before slamming her bedroom door behind her. Ziva frowned, but didn't get to think much about it before Tony's arms wrapped around her. Ziva turned in his arms and pecked him on the lips, only just managing it because of the bump between them. Tony smiled.

"How's the little fella, then?" Tony asked, rubbing his hand on Ziva's belly. They had eventually found out that they were having a boy this time. Tony smiled as she winced when she felt a kick.

"Kicking, like crazy," she replied. "He is definitely a DiNozzo – getting on my last nerve."

"Hey, it's what we do best," Tony joked.

Ziva looked up the stairs. "What is wrong with Maria?"

Tony shrugged. "I'll talk to her for you."

"Auntie 'Ria! Auntie 'Ria!" The twins ran up the stairs holding some pieces of paper with what looked like drawings on them. Tony chuckled before following the twins upstairs into Maria's room. He spotted the teenage girl lying on her bed, headphones in. The twins had already left, surprisingly, so Tony took this as a chance to talk to her.

"Hey, Maria, you want to talk?"

"About the fact that my boyfriend is a lying jerk? Ok then..."

* * *

><p>Ziva woke from her nap on the sofa to a yell and a slam from a door upstairs. She rubbed her eyes and sat up, frowning when she heard someone running down the stairs.<p>

"Momma, momma!"

Ziva turned to see the twins, Kate and TJ, running towards her. "Yes, darlings?" She realized they had mildly shocked expressions on their faces.

"Guess what Daddy said, momma!" Kate cried as the twins started jumping up and down in front of their mother.

"What did Daddy say?" Ziva asked, suddenly worried.

"Daddy said, 'Fuck'!" TJ yelled.

Ziva's eyes narrowed. "He did, did he?"

The twins nodded. Just then, Tony walked into the room. He froze when he noticed Ziva's glare on him.

"What?"

* * *

><p>Ziva opened her eyes to see Tony climbing not so subtly into bed beside her. She sighed and turned over.<p>

"You do know that by trying to creep in quietly, you are actually making more noise?" she asked.

Tony jumped at her voice. "I didn't think you were awake!"

"You do not think much though, so it is not much of a surprise."

Tony frowned. "You make a good point…"

Ziva chuckled as she sat up fully next to her husband and turned on the lamp. Tony moved next to her and wrapped his arms around her, smiling as she leant into him. They were just getting comfortable when Tony remembered something.

"Abby just called," he told her. Ziva groaned.

"What was it about?" she asked.

"Tomorrow."

"What about tomorrow?"

Tony chuckled. "You really do have a brain of mush now, don't you?"

Ziva frowned. "What do you mean?"

Tony smiled. "You'll see tomorrow."

Ziva sighed and lay down, facing away from Tony. What was going on tomorrow? She would have to wait and see…

* * *

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	12. Birthday Parties, and Phone Calls

**Here's the next chapter! Enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Tony opened the door to the room quietly, shushing the trio behind him.<p>

"Is she awake, Tony?" Maria hissed. Tony shook his head.

"Still asleep and oblivious."

"I can't believe she forgot her own birthday."

"She's pregnant, Maria. Don't expect her to remember everything."

"But still…"

"Daddy, are we gonna give Mommy her pwesent now?" Kate asked, tugging on Tony's pant leg. Tony smiled at her before telling them to stay behind and walking up to the bed. He gently shook Ziva's shoulder.

"Ziva, wake up, sweetcheeks," he whispered. Ziva groaned, but turned to face Tony.

"What?"

"What's the date today?" he asked, grinning.

"You woke me up just to ask me the date?" Ziva glared at Tony.

"Just tell me what the date is."

Ziva looked over at the digital alarm clock. "It is the 12th of November. Why?"

Suddenly, the twins ran into the room with Kate holding a card and TJ holding a wrapped box. Maria walked in behind them, holding a tray with breakfast on it. The twins climbed onto the bed with huge grins on their faces.

"What is going on?" Ziva asked, although a smile was tugging at her lips.

"Buon compleanno, mamma! _**(Happy birthday, mommy!)**_" TJ yelled.

"Bon anniversaire, maman, _**(Happy birthday, mommy)**_," Kate said in a quieter voice. Ziva smiled as she sat the twins next to her.

"You remembered?" Ziva gasped in mock surprise. The twins nodded as Maria placed the tray on the bedside table.

"Daddy 'membered too, and he took us out to get you a birfday pwesent," TJ explained as she handed Ziva the present. Kate gave her the card.

"We made you a birfday card at daycare too! Miss hewped us!"

Ziva opened the card and smiled. The twins had drawn stick figures of themselves smiling and colored them in. Above it, in bold letters that were clearly the teacher's, were the words '**HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOMMY**'. What made Ziva really smile were the names that were written below.

"You can write you names all by yourself?" Ziva asked the twins. TJ nodded and pointed at where she had written _Tali_.

"Yeah, I wite my name hewe, see?" TJ grinned proudly. Ziva smiled and nodded.

"And Kate wrote her name too?"

Kate nodded. "And we was gonna wite baby's name too but we don' know baby's name yet."

"Ah." Ziva placed the card on the table and picked up the present, opening it. She gasped when she opened it.

It was the purple evening dress she had seen when she had gone shopping with Maria the other day, and she remembered wishing she could fit into it. She looked up at Maria.

"Feliz cumpleaños, Ziva, _**(Happy birthday, Ziva)**_" Maria said. "I knew you loved the dress. It's for after the baby's born, when you've got your 'You wouldn't believe I've had three kids!' figure back."

Ziva chuckled. "Thank you."

"Well, everybody out. Momma's gotta finish her breakfast now," Tony announced, picking the twins off the bed and placing them on the floor. Maria led the twins out of the room.

"What is going on?" Ziva asked Tony.

"You have a party at one, and it's eleven now," he explained. Ziva nodded before she fully realized what he had said.

"Party?"

* * *

><p>Ziva waddled into the living room, and smiled at what she saw.<p>

There were blue and green streamers everywhere, and some banners were hung up. Some read '_It's A Boy_', whilst others read '_Happy Birthday!_'. There was a table set up for the food, most of which was already set out.

But that wasn't what made her smile. What made her smile was the fact that every single one of her friends – NCIS coworkers, close friends… ect – were there and smiling at her. Even Andy, despite how far along she was.

"Happy birthday!" they exclaimed. Tears sprung to Ziva's eyes.

"Thank you, everybody," she said. Tony managed to hug her before she burst into tears.

"Hey, hey, no more emotional tears," Tony joked. Everyone laughed.

"Oh, alright then," Ziva smiled.

"Let's get this party started?" Tony suggested.

"Of course."

"In that case," Andy sat down on the sofa. "Right," Andy said. "I'm sitting right here, and I ain't moving. Anyone who tries to move me will get a fist in the face and a stethoscope up their backside. Got it, people?"

Everyone laughed.

* * *

><p>Tony picked up the ringing phone as he passed a slice of cake to TJ. "DiNozzo residence." His face hardened when he heard who was on the other line. "This is him speaking…"<p>

Ziva frowned when she saw his face, and became suspicious when he walked out of the room. "What is going on?"

"Probably nothing you need to worry about," Abby sighed as she joined Ziva and Andy on the sofa.

"So, Andy, why are you here? I thought you would be resting?" Ziva asked.

"I had to come to my best mate's birthday party, Ziva. Plus, I brought cake," Andy smirked.

"Oh yes, I remember the last time I found you making cake," Ziva laughed.

"When was that?" Abby asked.

"A couple of months ago…"

* * *

><p><strong>FLASHBACK<strong>

_Ziva knocked on the door to the Alchels' home and waited on their front porch. Their house wasn't that big – it looked like it had about three or four bedrooms, with a family bathroom, a living room, and a kitchen-diner._

_About five minutes later, Andy came to the door. She smiled._

"_Oh, hi Ziva!" Andy greeted. "How are you?"_

_Ziva sniffed the air. "I smell cake."_

_Andy rolled her eyes. "Oh, I'm doing great. Thanks for asking."_

**END OF FLASHBACK**

* * *

><p>All three women laughed.<p>

"Typical pregnant Ziva, eh?" Abby joked.

"Yeah," Andy laughed.

"So, Andy, how is Mukta?" Ziva asked.

"Oh, she's great. She had a little boy at the end of September. He's called _Aaron Samuel_," Andy explained. Abby awed.

"What a cute name!"

"You are due at the end of this week, are you not?" Ziva asked.

"Yeah, on the 17th. I'm hoping for a little boy, but David wants a girl," Andy explained.

"Have you thought of names yet?" Ziva asked.

"I like the names Daniel and Isaiah for a boy, but David wants the names Emilia and Grace for a girl. If we do have a girl, we're definitely naming her Rachel, though," Andy said.

"Rachel's a nice name," Abby commented.

"Yes. It means '_one with purity_' in Hebrew," Ziva added.

"It sounds sweet when you put it like that," Andy thought out loud.

"What are you ladies talking about?" David asked as he leant on the back of the sofa. The women smirked as they looked at him.

"Nothing."

Tony walked back into the living room, holding the phone in his hand with a grim look on his face. As soon as he noticed Ziva looking at him, his face brightened. He put the phone down and leaned over the back of the sofa, kissing Ziva on the forehead. Ziva smiled.

"What was that call about?" Ziva asked. Tony's face turned serious for a second before he smiled again.

"We'll talk later," he whispered, patting her on the shoulder.

* * *

><p>Ziva watched as Tony climbed into bed beside her in boxers and an old t-shirt. She sat up in bed and leaned on him, smiling.<p>

"What is it that you wanted to talk to me about, Tony?" Ziva asked. Tony took a deep breath.

"It was the Director that called," Tony said.

"What did he want?" Ziva asked.

"He wanted me to do a… mission for him."

"What kind of mission?"

"I have to keep an eye on an agent. Vance thinks that he's betraying the agency, so I have to follow him everywhere and I have to report in everyday… for a few weeks."

"A few weeks?" Ziva exclaimed.

"Ziva, I'm sorry. I just… it's for a raise, Ziva. We need the money. I mean, raising three kids under the age of five?"

Ziva sighed. "When are you going?"

"Next week. The Director promised I would be home before Christmas, though, so it should be three to four weeks, tops."

"Promise?" Ziva asked. Tony smiled.

"Promise."

* * *

><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	13. Screaming Kids and Annoying Partners

"NO!"

Tony sighed as he just finished explaining to the little girl in front of him why he was going away for a couple of weeks.

"TJ, I won't be gone long…"

"NO!"

"I promise I'll come back…"

"NO!"

"TJ!"

She screamed.

Tony just sighed and walked out the front door, getting some fresh air to calm himself down. He'd just spent the last half-an-hour trying to say goodbye to TJ, and she'd just plain refused to let him go. Kate was a much easier child to deal with.

As soon as he stepped back inside, he saw TJ standing in the corridor crying her eyes out. He picked her up and cradled her, rocking her gently until she stopped crying. As soon as she stopped, he put her down and knelt down so that he was level with her.

"TJ, are you listening to me?" he asked calmly. She nodded.

"Daddy has to go on a business trip, ok baby?" he said. TJ nodded.

"Daddy?" she said quietly, just loud enough that Tony could hear.

"Yes, baby?" he asked.

"I don't want you to go," she said before hugging him tightly around the neck. Tony hugged her back.

"I know, baby, I know." He kissed her hair. "But I promise to come back. I'll make sure to be here when Santa brings your presents."

"Pinky swear?" TJ asked, holding out her pinky. Tony grinned before linking his pinky with hers.

"Pinky swear."

* * *

><p>"Agent DiNozzo, you're late."<p>

Tony cringed when he heard the words come out of the Director's mouth. "There were a few problems that had to be take care of at home."

"Make sure it doesn't happen again."

"Yes sir."

Director Vance picked up a file and threw it at the agent. "You will be following an agent, more specifically Special Agent Martin Black. He has contacts outside the agency, but we suspect that he is actually one of our double agents. You and Agent Barrett will be posing as a couple to keep an eye on him."

It was only then that Tony noticed the young woman sitting at the end of the table. She had long blonde hair, which was tied back, and grey-blue eyes and she was smiling at Tony warmly. "Hi," she said to him.

"Hi," he returned, a little hesitantly.

"You two better get used to each other – you'll be out for at least four weeks, if not more," the Director warned.

"Woah, woah, woah. You know I can't do more than four weeks," Tony told the Director.

"We'll see how it goes, Special Agent DiNozzo," the Director said before leaving the room.

There was an awkward silence in the room before Agent Barrett broke it.

"Well, I'm EJ, but you'll be calling me Karen for this mission." She held out her hand for Tony to shake. "It's nice to meet you, Agent DiNozzo."

Tony nodded back at her, not taking her hand. "Nice to meet you, EJ. I'm Tony DiNozzo, and I guess I'm being called…" He looked in the folder. "…Peter for this mission." He smirked. "That's a lame name."

"Actually, I suggested it to the Director."

Tony stared at EJ for a few seconds. "That's a lame name," he repeated. EJ glared at him.

Tony DiNozzo was getting on her nerves.

* * *

><p><strong>Review!<br>A/N: I might not review for a while, but it doesn't mean I'm stopping the story! GCSEs ruin everything!**


	14. ExGirlfriends and Calling Home

**Hey readers! Here's the next chapter!**

* * *

><p>Tony lay on the couch of the apartment he and EJ would be sharing for the mission.<p>

The apartment was cozy. It had two bedrooms, one with a single bed and the other with a double bed, a small bathroom and a kitchen which opened out into the living room. Each of the rooms had average sized windows apart from the bathroom, and the living room window had a view so that they could see right into Agent Black's apartment across the street, which is what EJ was staring through.

"Karen, stop staring through the window," Tony sighed.

"Why?" EJ asked.

"Because you'll give us away."

"No I won't."

"Well, you'll make him suspicious."

"He won't realize it's us."

"Yes he will. I used to go out with him for drinks after work. He knows my face."

"But he doesn't know mine."

"He can hack into all of our personnel files. He'll know you days before you know him."

"Stop being so paranoid, Peter."

"Funny, that's what my w…" Tony froze. There could be bugs in the room. "…weally stupid ex-girlfriend said to me when I thought she was cheating on me. I didn't think she even knew that word."

"Was she cheating on you?"

"Yeah. I mean, she's my ex now isn't she?"

EJ sighed. "I guess so."

Tony picked up his cell phone and dialed a number, waiting for the person to pick up. He got up to talk in his bedroom. EJ turned around just as he was leaving.

"Where are you going?" she called out.

"To talk to a family member. She's expecting so I check up on her every day," Tony answered before shutting his bedroom door.

"Ok…" EJ frowned. This was getting awkward.

* * *

><p>Ziva was exhausted.<p>

If dealing with a crying TJ for ten minutes was bad, then dealing with a constantly moody TJ was even worse. It had only been three days since Tony had left for his mission, and for both days TJ woke up crying and cried until she went to daycare. From when she came home onwards, she continued to cry, and for the first night she'd cried herself to sleep. The only one who could calm her down was Gibbs, and he was working on his boat and drinking bourbon half the time. Maria even had to have babysitting duties now.

Ziva felt sorry for her younger sister. She had to cancel her extra-curricular activities, and she couldn't even meet up with friends anymore due to the fact that TJ was always so moody and tired, if not crying.

Ziva couldn't even take TJ into work unless she was asleep the whole time or with Gibbs, and that meant they couldn't have a single case when TJ was around.

She was about to lie down when her cell phone rang. She picked it up without looking at the caller ID. "Hello?" she asked tiredly.

"_Ziva? Are you alright?_"

Ziva smiled when she heard Tony's voice. "I am just tired."

"_It's TJ, isn't it?_"

"She just won't let me rest. I will handle it, though."

"_Ziva, it's too much stress for you. Let me call Gibbs and ask him to take care of you four. It would take some of the weight off your shoulders._"

"Tony, I am fine…"

"_It's not just for you though… think about the baby._"

Ziva stopped. She hadn't even considered that. "Well…" She made circling motions on her stomach with her fingers as she thought about it. "Alright."

"_Good._"

"And how are you, Tony? What is your mission like?"

"_You know I can't tell you that, Ziva. Especially over the phone._"

Ziva pouted, although she knew Tony wouldn't be able to see it. "Please?" she begged.

"_Fine. I'm partnered with this agent called EJ Barrett, and we have to act as a couple for the next four weeks._"

Ziva raised an eyebrow. "Does she know anything about you?"

"_I haven't told her anything._"

Ziva frowned. "Why not?"

"_I don't know her, Zi. She could be a long lost enemy of mine for all I know! I mean, it's happened before!_"

"I know. It is just…" Ziva thought about how to put it. "What if she starts taking a liking to you?"

"_In what way?_" Ziva could tell Tony was confused.

"In _that_ way."

"_That way?_" Tony paused on the other line as he thought. "_Oh, _that_ way._" She heard Tony chuckle faintly. "_Don't worry about it. I'll keep her in line._"

"Promise?"

"_Of course, Zi? What kind of husband would I be if I let someone other than my wife walk all over me?_"

"A very bad one."

Tony laughed. "_Yeah, well, I should be going. EJ, or should I say Karen, will be getting suspicious. We're meant to be acting as a couple, as I told you, so we're meant to be together a lot._"

"Ah, ok." Ziva smiled. "I will see you soon, then?"

"_Sure, babe. I love you._"

"I love you too." Ziva put the phone down and lay down on the bed. Who was EJ Barrett? _I have never heard of her_, she thought. Not long after, she fell into a peaceful sleep.

* * *

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	15. Nightmares, Tea and Mission Files

**Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

><p><strong>34 weeks<strong>

_Ziva glared at the woman sitting at her desk. "What are you doing here?"_

_The woman looked up at her. "I work here, of course!"_

"_That is my desk."_

"_No it's not. I work here."_

_Ziva frowned. "What is your name?"_

"_I'm EJ DiNozzo."_

"_DiNozzo?" Ziva stared at her in shock. "I am Tony's wife."_

"_No you're not. He gave up on you when he found someone prettier than you." She held up a wedding ring that looked exactly like hers. "I'm Tony's new wife EJ DiNozzo, and together we have four kids. According to Tony, you've never existed because he never loved you."_

"_But…"_

"_Never did, never will. Your own daughters and son don't even remember you. And do you know why?" EJ stood up to face Ziva. "Because you're a failure. You can't even take care of two kids whilst your husband's away on one small mission." EJ took Ziva's hand and held it up so that they could both see it. "See? No wedding ring. And this desk? You walked away from it for good once you and Tony got divorced. Nobody even cared." She grinned evilly at Ziva. "You aren't wanted here."_

_Ziva turned to walk away. Before she took another step, she looked back and saw that EJ was gone. She frowned before looking up at the catwalk, where she saw Tony kissing EJ. She stared in shock before suddenly falling into an endless black hole…_

Ziva sat up in bed, shaking and sweating. _Another nightmare?_

It had been two weeks since Tony had left for his mission with EJ, and Ziva didn't feel like she was handling anything well. The four of them had gone to stay with Gibbs, and they had all been getting more rest than usual. However, Ziva had kept having nightmares about EJ ever since Tony had told her about the woman.

She got up from her bed and headed downstairs slowly, making sure she could see where she was stepping before she moved. As soon as she reached the bottom of the staircase, a voice startled her.

"Can't sleep, Ziva?"

Ziva turned her head to see Gibbs standing at his basement door, a glass of bourbon in his hand. "Uh… no."

Gibbs smiled and nodded. "All right then."

"I was going to make myself some tea."

"How about I make it for you?"

Ziva smiled. "Thank you, Gibbs."

Gibbs smiled at her and led her into the kitchen, where he put on the kettle and got her a mug and grabbed the teabags. "You heard from DiNozzo recently, Ziva?"

Ziva sat down on one of the stools and nodded. "He called me last night." She moved about on the chair. "This is uncomfortable."

"How about you go sit in the living room and I bring you your tea?" Gibbs suggested. Ziva smiled at him gratefully before waddling to the living room and sitting on the sofa. Not long after, Gibbs followed with a mug of tea in one hand and a folder in the other. He handed the mug to Ziva, and she took it gratefully.

"Thank you." She took as sip from it and smiled. _Mmmm, tea…_

Gibbs dropped the folder onto the coffee table. Ziva frowned at him, confused.

"Read it," Gibbs said. Ziva put down her mug before picking up the file, and she gaped when she saw it.

"How… how did you manage to get this?" she asked.

"I made a deal with the Director." Gibbs snorted. "Never doing that again."

Ziva smiled. "You knew about my nightmares?"

"Had a gut feeling, Ziva. The file tells you everything about the mission and the agents on it." Gibbs got up. "I'm gonna go make myself some coffee. Make sure you read it." And with that, he left the room and headed to the kitchen.

Ziva flicked through the file. _Every piece of information…_

Gibbs walked into the living room after about fifteen minutes to find Ziva asleep on the sofa. He smiled as he quickly ran up to her room and grabbed a pillow, a comforter and a blanket before running back down. He draped the blanket over her before lifting her head gently and placing the pillow there. He stroked her hair in a fatherly manner.

"Night, Ziva."

* * *

><p>Maria walked into the living room. "Ziva? Where are you?" She stopped when she got into the living room. "Ziva?"<p>

Ziva lay curled up on the sofa, a blanket and a comforter covering her with a pillow beneath her head. Maria sighed before walking over to wake up her sister.

"Ziva? Ziva!"

Ziva opened her eyes slowly and blinked blearily. "Maria?"

"Yeah, it's me. Wake up."

Ziva sat up and leaned back against the back of the sofa. "Alright. I am awake now."

"Were you down here all night, Zi?"

Ziva shook her head. "I came downstairs for a cup of tea and then I fell asleep on the sofa."

"Ah." Maria put her hand on Ziva's belly. "And how's junior?" She smiled when she felt a kick, and Ziva winced.

"Kicking harder every day." She looked up at the clock on Gibbs' mantelpiece. "Are the twins…?"

"Gibbs took them. I was just about to head off to school, but then you weren't in your room when I went to say goodbye so I came to find you." Maria hugged Ziva. "Have a good day. Nathan's picking me up, so I've got a ride." She gave Ziva an accusing look. "Drive carefully, and _slowly_. It doesn't matter that you're trying to get to work, you're still pregnant." She got up and grabbed her bag from by the door on her way out. "See ya, Ziva!"

"Goodbye, Maria. Have a good day at school!" Ziva called out just before the front door closed. She sighed as she leant her head back.

She needed some tea.

* * *

><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	16. Finding Leaks and Calling Family

**Next chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

><p><strong>37 weeks<strong>

Tony watched Agent Black leave his apartment across the street and walk down to the café just a few blocks away, just as he did every morning. He sighed.

"Found anything yet, EJ?" he asked.

"It's Karen. And no, nothing yet." EJ sat up from where she had been hunched over her laptop watching the security footage. "You?"

Tony shook his head. "No… wait." He grabbed the binoculars from the table and used them to watch as Black sat at a table with another person. "He's talking to somebody. Gimme the camera."

EJ handed him the camera. "I hope you've caught someone other than his girlfriend, Tony."

"Unless he's gay, this isn't someone he's having an affair with." He zoomed in with the camera and snapped a few pictures of the person. "Put this on the computer and run it through AFIS." He handed EJ the camera.

"Yes sir." EJ took the camera and connected it to her laptop. "You gonna call your sister?"

"Sister? Oh you mean…!" Tony grabbed his cell phone and walked out of the room into his. He dialed a familiar number. He waited for the person to answer.

"_DiNozzo._"

"Why, hello Mrs DiNozzo."

He heard Ziva chuckle on the other line. "_Good morning, Tony. I was wondering if you would call, since you did not call last night._"

"Sorry about that. We just had to make sure our cover was solid."

"…_solid?_"

"Just a date. Maybe a kiss or two. Nothing else," he added hastily.

"_Oh. Ok._" Ziva paused on the other line. "_Would you like to talk to TJ? She has been sulking all day, and I thought you could cheer her up._"

Tony smiled. "I'd love to talk to her. Put her on."

"_Alright._" He heard some scuffling in the background before a small voice came onto the phone.

"_Hello?_"

"And how's daddy's little girl?"

He heard TJ gasp. "_Daddy!_"

"Yes…?"

"_Daddy, I miss you!_"

"I miss you too, principessa _**(princess)**_."

"_When you comin' back, daddy?_"

"Soon, Tali, soon." Tony smiled. "And do you know what we're gonna do first when I come back?"

"_No. What?_"

"We're gonna go to the theme park just like you wanted to."

TJ gasped. "_Weally?_"

"Yup."

"_Pwomise?_"

"I'll make sure we go, TJ, but I can't absolutely promise it." Tony heard EJ call his name. "Look, princess, daddy's gotta go now, ok?"

"_Ok. Love you._"

"Love you too, Tali." He ended the call and sprinted to the living room. "Yeah?"

"I got a match, and the Director won't exactly be too pleased…"

* * *

><p>Ziva took the phone from TJ. "You spoke to daddy, yes?"<p>

"Yes, momma." TJ nodded. She picked up her blue rucksack. "Are we going now?"

"Grandpa will drop you off." Ziva bent down so that she was level with TJ. "Be a good girl for momma and papa, alright?"

TJ nodded before skipping to the front door and standing beside Kate. Ziva smiled as the little girl ran off before gasping when someone helped her up. She turned to see it was Gibbs.

"Oh, thank you Gibbs," she said.

"No problem." He kissed Ziva on the forehead. "See you at work, ok?"

"Of course."

* * *

><p>Tony put the phone on speaker. "Director Vance?"<p>

"_Yes, Agent DiNozzo?_"

"We, Agent Barrett and I, found another leak within the agency."

"_Really?_"

"Yes sir," EJ answered. "His name is Phillip Banks, and he works in the legal department. It seems he's been getting Black out of all legal problems with his skills, which means Black has always been off the hook."

"_You following this guy?_" Vance asked.

"They're going to New York next week. We'll track them down there and follow them," Tony explained. "But we've found something else, Director. Phillip Banks used to be part of a terrorist organization. His real name is Lamar DeGree, and he was one of their leaders."

"_Alright then. Make sure you keep an eye on him and send me any updates, DiNozzo and Barrett._"

"Yes sir," they answered before Vance ended the call. Tony smirked.

"Make sure you're packed. We're heading to New York."

* * *

><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	17. Waters Breaking and Coming Back

**Sorry for the long wait! We've just done our first controlled assessment in GCSE English, so I had to study for that.  
>Enjoy the chapter!<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>38 weeks<strong>

Ziva put her head down on her desk. She was exhausted.

For the last week, there had been no cases, so they'd all been stuck on paperwork for the whole time. The amount of paperwork she'd done had worn her out alone. That and the fact that she had two weeks until her due date, plus the fact that Tony hadn't come back due to a lead they'd found a week ago, was adding to her exhaustion. TJ was almost back to her over-enthusiastic self, so they were almost always chasing her around the house.

Ziva closed her eyes.

"You alright, Ziva?" McGee asked. Ziva looked up.

"Yes, I am fine."

"Because you still have quite a bit of paperwork to do, and you weren't moving for five minutes."

Ziva sighed. "Can Gibbs not do this?"

"You wanted to come into work today, Ziva," Gibbs pointed out as he walked in.

Ziva picked up her pen and started writing again. "Fine then." Not long after, she froze and frowned, touching her stomach. McGee noticed this and looked up.

"Ziva, are you alright?"

Ziva looked up at him. "Oh, yes. I am fine." She continued to write up the reports. McGee nodded uncertainly before starting his paperwork again. Gibbs got up from his desk.

"I'm gonna check on Abby." He walked out of the bullpen without another glance at his agents as they continued to work.

Ten minutes later, Ziva suddenly felt a pain in her lower stomach. She gasped and gripped her belly with her left hand, accidentally snapping her pen in half with the other. McGee looked up from his work sharply.

"Ziva? What happened?" he asked as he rushed over to her. She took deep breaths and kept her eyes closed.

"McGee," she gasped. "I think the baby is coming."

* * *

><p>"I'm fine, Gibbs. I just wanted some juice."<p>

Gibbs raised his eyebrows at the pregnant forensic scientist.

Abby crossed her arms. "Don't raise your eyebrows at me. I'm fine, baby's fine, we're all gonna live."

On her desk, Abby's phone started to ring. She put it on speaker. "Abby's labby, how can I help you?"

"_Abby! Is Gibbs there?_" came McGee's worried voice over the line.

"Yeah, I'm here McGee. There a problem?" Gibbs asked.

"_Ziva's having contractions. Her waters haven't broken yet, but she's worried that they could break any minute._"

Gibbs nodded although he knew McGee couldn't see it. "I'll be there in a sec, McGee." He quickly pecked Abby on the cheek before rushing to the elevator. Abby stood in the lab, wringing her hands nervously.

_Not now_, she thought. _Please, not now._ She looked out of the window. "Tony, please come back," she whispered.

* * *

><p>Ziva sat on her chair, hyperventilating. McGee rubbed her back soothingly.<p>

"Calm down, Ziva. You're gonna be fine," he said comfortingly.

"I need Tony," she whispered.

"Ziva, we're here for you. Just calm down. Take deep breaths," McGee suggested. Ziva did as she was told and calmed down immediately. Just then, Gibbs walked in.

"Ziva, you alright?" he asked as he kneeled in front of her. Ziva shook her head.

"I… I do not know what to do. Last time, Tony guided me through and helped me whilst I was panicking. Now I am panicking, and there is no one to guide me." Ziva gripped the desk to stop herself from crying.

"Hey, it's ok, Ziva," Gibbs said softly. "We're here to help." He got up. "Now let's get you to the hospital." He held out his hand for Ziva to take, and she smiled. As soon as she touched his hand, her eyes widened in shock.

"Uh, Gibbs?" She looked up at him worriedly. "My waters just broke."

"Crap," Gibbs muttered. "McGee, get DiNozzo on the line."

"But Boss…" McGee started.

"Just do it, McGee!" Gibbs helped Ziva up and grabbed her bag, walking her to the elevator. McGee quickly dialed Tony's number and waited impatiently for him to pick up.

_Come on, Tony_, he thought. _We need you now._

* * *

><p>"You got everything? I'm locking up!" Tony picked up his bag from the couch.<p>

"No! Let me get my make-up bag!"

Tony sighed and dropped the keys on the coffee table. "You lock up then. I'll get the car."

"Ok!"

Tony walked out of the apartment and brought the car round the front. As he pulled up in front of the block he felt his phone vibrating in his pocket. He pulled it out and flipped it open. "DiNozzo."

"_Tony? Oh, thank god!_"

"McGee?" Tony frowned. "What do you want?"

"_Tony, where are you?_"

"I'm sorry, I can't…"

"_TONY!_"

"I'm on my way up to New York. Why?"

"_Oh no…_"

Tony grew worried. "McGee, what is it?"

"_It's Ziva. She's in labor._"

Tony nearly dropped his phone. "She's _what_?"

"_In labor, Tony. Her waters broke five minutes ago._"

Tony cursed under his breath. Why now? "I'm on my way."

"_Seriously?_"

"Yeah. I'll see you asap." Tony ended the call and sighed. Of all the times… that didn't matter now. He was leaving. EJ could go without him. His eyes widened in realization as he jumped out of the car just as EJ came out of the building with her bags.

"Tony? What's wrong?" she asked.

Tony gulped.

* * *

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	18. Ditching Missions & Meeting Old Friends

**Hey readers! Here's the next chapter! Enjoy it!**

* * *

><p>"What's wrong, Tony?" EJ asked. She spotted the bags in Tony's arms. "What's going on?"<p>

"I'm leaving," Tony stated.

"I know we are, Tony."

"No, I mean I'm leaving this mission."

EJ frowned. "What?"

"I'm leaving for Washington."

"Why?"

"Ziva's in labour."

"Ziva?" EJ's eyes narrowed. "You mean your sister?"

"My sister? She's my wife!"

"Your w-" EJ dropped her bags in shock. "You lied to me?"

"I don't trust you." Tony started walking away. "You carry on this mission. I'm leaving."

EJ stared after him, dumbstruck. "You're going? Just like that?" She shook with anger. "What's the Director gonna think?" she called out after him.

Tony smirked and turned to face her. "Do I look like I care?" He turned and headed for the nearest bus stop.

EJ watched after him. "Tony…"

* * *

><p>Ziva gripped the inside of the door as she went through another contraction. "How long until we get there, Gibbs?" she ground out through clenched teeth.<p>

"We're here," Gibbs announced as he skidded to a stop in the middle of the car park. McGee grabbed Ziva's bag from the seat beside him and jumped out of the car, shutting the door behind him before opening Ziva's. Ziva took his hand and let him pull her out of the car. As soon as she got out, she remembered something.

"What about Maria and the twins? They do not know I am here," she told Gibbs. Gibbs took the bag off McGee.

"Call Maria and tell her we're here. She'll pick up the twins after school," Gibbs explained before walking into the hospital with Ziva.

McGee pulled out his cell phone. "I just hope you hurry, Tony," he muttered as he dialed Maria's number.

* * *

><p>Tony sat restless on the bus, tapping anything within reach, and he just so happened to be tapping on the head of the man in front of him. The man growled.<p>

"Do you mind?" he asked, spinning to face Tony. Tony jumped, shocked.

"Uh… sorry." Tony moved his hands to his legs and started tapping there instead. After about five minutes, he realized something was wrong. He looked outside the window and realized the bus wasn't moving. "What's going on?" he muttered before grabbing his bags and heading for the front where the driver sat. He tapped on the window. "Uh, 'scuse me, what's going on?"

The driver looked up at him. "There's an accident up ahead. We can't move."

Tony groaned. What could he do now? He looked out of the window in despair and suddenly realized where he was. He turned to the bus driver. "I'm getting off. Open the doors."

"What?"

"Just open them!"

The doors opened. Tony jumped off the bus and ran for his destination. _I know it's around here somewhere. Just a little further…_

He didn't pause to see the accident that had caused the gridlock all the way down the street. Nor did he see the two dead NCIS agents or the injured NCIS agent being carried away on the stretcher…

* * *

><p>Ziva paced nervously at the foot of the hospital bed.<p>

It had been at least an hour since anyone had heard from Tony, who had been in his car when McGee had last called him, and she was getting worried. Would he make it on time?

"_The Director promised I would be home before Christmas, so it should be three to four weeks, tops."_

"_Promise?" Ziva asked. Tony smiled._

"_Promise."_

He'd promised to be home before Christmas. Now there were four days left, and he still wasn't back.

Ziva rubbed her stomach fondly. "Do not worry, little one. Your daddy is coming." She winced in pain and grabbed the bed post as she went through another contraction.

_He's coming_, she thought continually, _just wait._

* * *

><p>Tony raced down the street, ignoring the cries of "Hey, watch it!" and "Oi! Move it!" from passing pedestrians as he barged through them. He knew where he had to get to.<p>

As soon as he realized he'd reached his destination, he smiled. This was it. He walked straight into the police station and up to the front desk. "Hello?"

The receptionist was short, with short blonde hair and blue eyes. She looked up at him blankly before doing a double take. "Tony?"

Tony smiled. "Yeah, Molly?" he panted.

She stared in shock. "I haven't seen you for years!" She realized his tired state. "Sit, sit. I'll call Pete for you. He should be here." She looked around the reception as Tony sat down. "Yo, Eric! Is Pete here?"

A tall guy with red hair stopped walking and looked over at Molly. "Nope. He's at that car crash couple of miles away."

"Car crash?" Tony asked.

Eric looked over at Tony and smiled. "Yeah, that one that had three NCIS agents involved. You didn't see it?"

Tony shook his head. "Don't remember."

"What you doing up here in Baltimore anyways?" Eric asked as he sat beside Tony.

"I had a job to do up here, but now I've gotta get back to DC."

"Missing home?"

"My wife's in labour."

Eric and Molly stared at Tony in shock. "You have a wife?"

"And two kids, with another on the way."

"I never thought this day would come," Molly muttered. "Is that why you came here?"

"Yeah, I need a ride to DC. I didn't bring a car, so…"

"Mark's here."

Tony's ears perked up. "Mark? He's still here?"

"Yeah." Eric smiled. "I could get him to give you a ride if you want."

"Really?"

"Yup."

Tony smiled. "Thanks guys. I really appreciate it."

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	19. Injured Agents, and Will He Make It?

**Here's your long-awaited next chapter, readers! Enjoy it!**

* * *

><p>Tony smiled as he sat in the back of the police cruiser that was speeding down the highway at what must've been 80 miles per hour. The driver had short blonde hair with a blue streak in it that matched his eyes, and he was wearing a white shirt with navy trousers.<p>

"Thanks for the ride, Mark," Tony said.

"Hey, when your buddy decides to pay you a visit 'cause his wife's in labour, you can't just sit there and do nothing can ya?" Mark pointed out.

"Yeah, I guess."

There was a brief silence in the car until Mark asked, "How come you never told us about this wife of yours anyways?"

Tony shrugged. "I don't really know. We haven't really been keeping in contact, have we?"

"That's true. How long you been married for, anyways?"

"Two years."

"Two years? And three kids already?" Mark chuckled. "Jeez, Tony. You sure do work fast."

Tony chuckled. "I sure do."

* * *

><p>McGee sat back and tried to relax as he sat in the waiting room, waiting for Tony to arrive. He hadn't heard from Tony in three hours, and he was getting worried. Ziva was going further and further into labour and she was petrified that Tony wasn't there with her. Of course, Gibbs was there, but McGee could tell that Ziva didn't feel it was the same.<p>

There was a television on the wall of the waiting room, and what was on it caught McGee's eye. He frowned as he turned to watch it.

"_Breaking News: Two people have died and one person has been seriously injured in a serious car accident in Baltimore today.  
>It has been confirmed that two NCIS agents were killed and a third injured in this catastrophe. Over to Mel at the scene. Mel?<em>"

McGee froze. NCIS agents?

"_Thanks Mark. Here, in Baltimore, we arrive at the scene where three NCIS agents were involved in a dangerous collision…_"

McGee didn't wait to hear the rest. He stood and walked towards Ziva's room, not waiting to find out that it was Agents Black and Banks that were killed, and Agent Barrett was seriously injured.

* * *

><p>Tony bounced impatiently in the back seat. Mark nearly growled.<p>

"Would you stop bouncing?" Mark yelled. Tony stopped.

"Sorry. I'm a little nervous," Tony admitted.

"Well, calm down dude. We're nearly…" Mark didn't finish his sentence and groaned. Tony frowned.

"What's wrong?" he asked. Mark pointed through the windscreen, and Tony groaned when he saw what was up ahead.

All the way down the road there was traffic, it was literally gridlock. No one was moving even an inch. The cold December air was also making people impatient to get home, and not get stuck in the snow that the grey clouds above were threatening.

Tony grabbed his bag and tried to open the door, only to find it was locked. Mark turned to see what was happening.

"Tony, what are you doing?" he asked.

"Open the doors," Tony commanded.

"Why?"

"I'll run."

Mark stared at him, wide-eyed. "What?"

"I know where we are. The hospital isn't far from here. I'll run the rest of the way."

"Five miles, Tony?"

"I can run it. Just open the doors."

Mark did as he was told. "Good luck, Tony."

Tony smiled at Mark before climbing out of the car. "Thanks Mark." He shut the car door and turned to face the direction of the hospital. _I can make it_, he thought before setting off on his run towards the place.

* * *

><p>"What?"<p>

McGee and Gibbs were standing outside Ziva's hospital room, trying to talk over the cries that were coming from the woman in pain that was inside the room.

"I said, I think Tony's in hospital."

Gibbs shook his head. "What's your proof, McGee?"

"The news…"

"Did you finish listening to the police report, McGee?"

McGee hung his head. "No."

"Exactly. It could be another agent." He turned to go back into the room.

"Hopefully," McGee muttered under his breath. When he entered the room, he saw a sight that he thought he would never see in his life…

Ziva holding Gibbs by his collar. And Gibbs looked surprisingly calm.

"Where is he?" she growled.

"DiNozzo's on his way, Ziva," Gibbs sighed. He carefully removed Ziva's hands from his collar. "Just calm down."

"How can I calm down when I am in labour and my husband isn't even here to see our child?" Ziva screamed. Gibbs pulled her into a tight hug.

"He promised…" Ziva cried into his shirt over and over.

"And he'll keep that promise," Gibbs whispered as he rubbed Ziva's back reassuringly. Ziva tightened her grip on Gibbs' shirt as she went through another contraction.

* * *

><p>Tony raced down the road. "I'm nearly there," he panted as he spotted the hospital in the distance. He sprinted down the road, dodging through people – <em>That's the second time I've done this today<em>, he thought – as he tried to get to the hospital in record time. He was mentally cheering when he reached the hospital car park and raced through to the entrance. Ignoring all the weird looks he was receiving, he jogged up to the front desk.

"I'm looking for the room of Ziva DiNozzo?" he panted.

The nurse looked up at him and smiled. "You must be Mr DiNozzo."

Tony nodded.

"Down the corridor, fifth room on the right. It should be room 110."

"Thanks." Tony shouldered his bag more comfortably before rushing down the corridor. Under the heat of the white lights reflecting off the walls, Tony could feel himself sweating. _102… 104… 106… 108… 110!_

Tony burst into the room without warning to find Ziva wrapped in Gibbs' arms and McGee sitting in the corner beside Abby, who was resting with her eyes closed. As soon as the door slammed against the wall, however, everyone turned to look at him. Ziva was the first to react.

"Tony!" she cried. Tony dropped his bag by the door and ran up to her, hugging her tightly and kissing her hair over and over.

"I'm so sorry I went on that mission, Ziva," he whispered. Ziva cried into his shirt.

"I missed you, Tony!" she mumbled, hugging him tightly. She moaned as she felt another contraction, and grabbed Tony's shirt tighter. Tony rubbed her back comfortingly.

"It's alright, Ziva, it's alright."

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><p><strong>Review! I'd love to hear your thoughts!<strong>


	20. The Final Stage Of Labour: He's Here!

**Here's the next chapter, readers! Enjoy!**

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><p>Tony sat in the chair by the bed, rubbing his face tiredly. He'd barely gotten any sleep the night before, due to the fact that he was preparing with EJ, and now he was helping his wife through labour at seven o'clock in the evening without even having a rest in between. He groaned. He would definitely be sleeping in tomorrow.<p>

He heard footsteps coming towards him and looked up to see McGee walking up to him with two cups of coffee in his hand. He smiled as McGee offered the coffee to him.

"Thanks, McGee." He took the coffee. McGee sat down next to him.

"How are you feeling?" McGee asked.

"Like I've had fifty headslaps," Tony joked. "My head is pounding."

"Is Gibbs in there with Ziva?" McGee asked.

"Yeah. I was getting a little tired so he stood in for me."

McGee nodded. There was silence for a little while before he spoke again. "So, who is EJ? What is she like?"

Tony pulled the cup of coffee away from his mouth. "EJ? She's ok. She's blonde, quite short…" Tony snorted at his next comment. "And she's into me."

"Into you?" McGee asked. "But you're married!"

"I know, and I told her so. I think she thought I was serious when we were on that mission." Tony chuckled. "That poor, naïve little girl." He sighed. "Ah well."

"Yeah." McGee took a sip of his coffee. "I can't believe I'll be here again in a couple of months."

Tony nodded as he took a sip of his coffee. "Abby's due in about two months, isn't she?"

McGee nodded. "But we've got the wedding in about a month."

Tony nodded. "You ready? I mean, you've got two important events coming up."

McGee shrugged. "I guess I'll take it as it comes." He looked over at Tony. "What about you? Are you ready?"

Tony looked down thoughtfully at his cup before making up his mind. He threw the cup into the bin. "I'm ready."

* * *

><p>Tony winced as Ziva crushed his hand whilst she went through another contraction. "That's it, Ziva. Keep crushing."<p>

"Enough of your sarcasm, Tony," she growled. She gripped his hand tighter as another contraction rippled through her, stronger than the one before. She was literally ready to cry.

It was about 10pm, and Ziva had so far been in labour for about nine hours. Tony had only been there for about 7 of them, due to the unnecessarily long journey from Baltimore to Washington. The couple was exhausted.

"Come on, Ziva. Not long to go," Tony comforted.

"Thank god!" she gasped as the contraction finished. Matt walked into the room, stethoscope around his neck – for no particular reason, might I add – and a small spring in his step.

"How is my favourite patient doing, then?" he asked. Ziva grunted, and then cried out in pain as she felt another contraction ripple through her. Tony winced as he felt his hand being crushed yet again. Matt waited for the contraction to finish before checking up on Ziva. He smiled when he'd finished.

"Looks like you're 10 cm, Ziva!"

Ziva groaned. "Don't be so happy-go-lucky about this – it will be your head that I will be biting off."

* * *

><p>McGee and Abby sat anxiously outside the hospital room, waiting patiently.<p>

It had been about an hour since Tony had come out to announce that Ziva was fully dilated, and they hadn't heard from them since. Gibbs had gone out for coffee, and also to check up on Maria and the twins.

Abby yawned and leaned on McGee's shoulder. "I hope they're alright," she muttered.

"They'll be fine," McGee replied, rubbing her back comfortingly. "It's Ziva and Tony, remember?"

"That's exactly why I'm worried, McGee. They're not exactly a 'normal' couple, are they?"

McGee snorted. "Give me the names of one couple you know that is."

Abby, put her fingers to her lip thoughtfully. "Touché."

McGee smiled and turned to fully face Abby. He pushed a strand of hair out of her face before landing a gentle kiss on her lips. "I love you."

Abby smiled. "I love you too, McGee."

* * *

><p>Ziva panted as she stopped pushing. <em>This is much harder than it was with the twins<em>, she thought.

"You're doing brilliantly, Ziva," Matt commented, making sure to use an adjective other than 'great'. "Just a couple more pushes and the baby should be here."

"Should?" Ziva asked. "Could you not be more certain?"

Tony rubbed her hand reassuringly. "Don't worry, Ziva. The baby will be here."

Ziva nodded.

"Ok, push!"

Ziva did as instructed and wailed as she felt the pain ripple through her. Tony rubbed her hand comfortingly although she was crushing it. Matt smiled as the first cries of the newborn baby were heard.

Tony smiled. "Finally!"

Ziva laughed exasperatedly. _I can finally relax a little._ She put her head back against the pillow and closed her eyes. Tony pulled some stray hair away from her face.

"Well done, baby," he whispered as he kissed her forehead.

* * *

><p><strong>See, I added a little McAbby in there too. Review!<strong>


	21. Anthony Jethro: AJ

**Hey readers! Enjoy the chapter! Since it's like half one in the morning over here, I though the for my first night on half term I'd give you something nice...**

* * *

><p>Ziva sat up in bed, smiling as she cradled her newborn baby boy in her arms. The past two months had been hectic for her, but this made it all worth it. She stroked the head of the sleeping baby in her arms that was yet to awake.<p>

The little boy had a significantly lighter skin tone than Ziva, but it was still darker than Tony's – more like when he had a sun tan. His hair was also very similar to Tony's, although it had dark streaks running through it that were very close in colour to her own dark hair. The colour of his eyes were yet to be known, as he fell asleep as soon as the nurses had finished checking him and given him a bottle of milk – the little boy had been extremely hungry – and hadn't woken up since.

A knock on the door woke her from her reverie. She looked up to see Tony walking in with a huge grin on his face.

"Hey, honey," he whispered, knowing that the baby was still asleep. Ziva smiled at him.

"I don't see how you can still be so chirpy at 11pm at night," she joked.

"The excitement got to me," he explained as he neared the bed. He looked over Ziva's shoulder at the little blue bundle. "Wow, he looks so much like me."

"I know." Ziva stroked the little boy's cheek gently. "I wonder what colour eyes he will have?"

"Whatever colour they are, they'll suit him perfectly." Tony reached down and stroked the little boy's head. After a few minutes, he reached down and took the little boy from Ziva's arms.

"Hey, little fella," he whispered. "I'm your daddy." He put his finger near the baby's hand and smiled as the baby gripped it. "Got quite a grip there, buddy. Just like your mother."

Ziva chuckled.

Tony rocked the baby gently. "He's just perfect."

Ziva nodded. "I know." She frowned. "He looks a little small to me."

"He's fine, Ziva," Tony said. "To be honest, he's bigger than I thought he would be."

A gentle knock on the door announced the team's arrival. Tony and Ziva looked up to see Abby, McGee, Palmer, Ducky, and even the Vances walking into the room. Ziva smiled tiredly.

"Hello everybody," Ziva greeted, just stifling a yawn. "How are you all?"

"Ziva, you look exhausted," Abby commented. "Don't mind about us – try to get some rest." She waddled over to where Tony was holding the baby. "May I see him?"

Tony leant down a little so that Abby could see the little boy in his arms. She gasped. "He's beautiful! He looks so much like you, Tony!" She looked up at him. "Can I hold him?"

Tony nodded and passed the baby to Abby carefully, being careful not to wake him. Abby cooed at the baby in her arms. McGee walked over to Tony and patted him on the back.

"Proud to be a newborn's daddy again, Tony?"

Tony smiled at McGee. "Of course I am." He looked over to where Abby was sitting on a soft chair on the corner whilst Kayla and Jared were looking at the baby over her shoulders. They both seemed to be staring in wonder, and when Jackie caught Kayla looking up at her, she immediately said, "No."

Everyone in the room laughed. That's when Tony realized there was someone missing.

"Where's Gibbs?" he asked.

That's when the door opened, and four people walked into the room. The youngest out of the four's eyes widened dramatically.

"Daddy!" she cried, dropping her blue blanket and running up to hug him. Tony bent down and scooped the little girl into his arms. Kate ran up to him not long after, dropping her teddy bear, and Tony managed the two girls in his arms.

"I missed you, papa!" TJ sobbed. Tony nodded.

"I know, baby, I know." He looked up and saw Gibbs and Maria standing at the door. He smiled at them briefly before moving to put the twins down on the bed next to Ziva. Kate was willing to let go, and immediately curled up next to her mother. TJ, however, was more reluctant.

"No, daddy! I don' wanna let go!" she wailed.

"If you sit down, you get to hold the baby," Tony promised. TJ looked up into his eyes before finally letting go and being sat down next to Ziva.

McGee picked up the baby from Abby's arms and carefully handed him to Tony, being careful not to wake him. Tony smiled at McGee as he took the baby before walking over to the bed.

"You want to see the baby?" Tony asked quietly. Kate nodded.

"I wanna hold him," TJ said adamantly. Ziva positioned TJ so that she would be able to hold the baby comfortably before Tony placed him in her arms.

TJ gasped as the baby squirmed a little before opening his eyes. Kate looked over TJ's shoulder and gasped.

"He looks like daddy!" she exclaimed. The little boy stared up at the two identical pairs of eyes that stared down at him.

Ziva chuckled. "Yes, he does." She looked up at Tony. "How about Anthony Jethro?"

Tony smiled. "Priceless and outstanding." He smiled. "I like it."

TJ cocked her head. "An…Anfo…Anfonee…" she struggled to say the little boy's name.

"How about AJ, honey?" Tony asked.

TJ smiled. "AJ…" Her own little brother.

* * *

><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	22. The Evils of Jealous Women

**Here's the next chapter, readers! And for any of you that are reading _Pretending_, I haven't updated yet because I've been focusing more on this story. However, I will get back to it soon.  
>Anyway, enjoy!<strong>

* * *

><p>Tony walked into the Director's office the following morning in a smart yet casual suit with a tie, with a proud look that showed clearly on his face. The Director rolled his eyes at the Special Agent before ordering him to sit down. Tony nodded and sat in the last and only available seat, next to Agent Barrett.<p>

The Director looked up at them from his desk. "As you know, the mission that we sent you on had a… surprising outcome."

"Yes sir."

Tony's eyes wandered to the sling that held EJ's arm.

"I want reports on my desk by Monday. Understood?"

Both agents nodded and got up to leave the room. Tony avoided eye-contact with EJ, knowing how he'd hurt her since the mission. Just as they were leaving the room, the Director called Tony's name.

"Yes, sir?" Tony turned to look at him.

The Director smiled. "Congratulations."

Tony smiled and nodded his thanks to the Director before leaving the room.

And neither man noticed EJ fuming on the chairs just outside the office.

* * *

><p>"I'm home!"<p>

TJ and Kate jumped up from the little table where they were doing their coloring and ran to the corridor. "Daddy!" they squealed as they ran up to him and hugged him around the legs. Tony smiled.

"Nice to see you too, pumpkins," he greeted. He laughed when the two girls clung to his legs and sat on his feet.

"Oh, so we're playing that game, eh?" he laughed. He walked towards the kitchen, taking huge steps so that he could actually move his feet with the girls on them. "Roar!" he yelled, making the girls laugh. "Fee, fie, foe, fum!"

"What are you doing?"

Tony stopped and turned his head to see Maria standing at the kitchen doorway. "I see you're making dinner?"

Maria smiled. "Yup."

Tony smiled and sniffed the air. "Smells good… Spaghetti?"

Maria nodded. "Yup. You want your dinner now?"

Tony shook his head. "I'll go change, then I'll feed these two and bath them."

"I'll bath them if you want?" Maria offered.

"Nah, I'll be fine." Tony smiled. "Thanks for the offer, though." He looked down at his legs. "Right you two, daddy can't climb the stair with two little monsters on his legs, can he?"

The girls giggled. "No."

"So can you please get off daddy's legs?"

Maria shook her head and laughed. "You two go and clean up the mess you left in the playroom, and then the mess in the living room."

"Yes, Mawia," both girls answered before running off to clean up their messes. Tony smiled and nodded his thanks before running upstairs to get changed.

Maria walked back into the kitchen and put the Bolognese sauce on a low simmer. Just as she was about to check on the twins, the doorbell rang. Maria frowned and went to answer it. _We weren't expecting anybody, were we?_

She opened the door to see a blonde woman, about her height, standing the door. She had grey-blue eyes, and was wearing a plain blue t-shirt with a pair of dark jeans and a wooly coat over the top. Just underneath the coat, Maria could see the sling on her arm.

"Uh, can I help you?" Maria asked.

The woman smiled, although Maria could see right through it. "Hello. You must be Ziva." She stuck out her hand. "I'm Agent Barrett."

Maria made an 'o' shape with her mouth. "You're the woman Tony worked with on his mission. I'm not Ziva; I'm her younger sister Maria."

Agent Barrett's smile faded immediately. "Oh." Her eyes looked more hopeful. "Is Tony in?"

Maria frowned. "Yes, he is."

"Who's what?" Tony bounded down the stairs. He froze when he saw the woman at the door. "EJ? What are you doing here?"

EJ smiled brightly. "I came to see you!"

Tony noticed Maria glaring at EJ darkly. "Yeah, well, I've got a family to take care of." He realized there was a cold breeze coming into the house. "Why don't you come in? Maria, let her in and shut the door behind her, would you?"

Maria was growling as EJ walked past her, and she slammed the door behind the woman. She walked into the kitchen to finish making dinner.

Tony walked into the living room. As soon as he heard EJ entering behind him, he turned to face her. "Why are you here?" he demanded.

"I was just wondering if I could see you wife and, you know, talk to her," EJ stated innocently.

Tony narrowed his eyes. "Don't give me any of that…"

"Daddy?"

Tony turned and saw Kate and TJ walking into the room. EJ cocked her head when she saw them.

"These must be your daughters," she said in a sickly sweet voice.

Kate and TJ immediately shied away from her. "Daddy, who's this?" TJ asked.

"This is daddy's… friend from work," Tony lied, glaring at EJ.

"Oh."

Kate looked the woman up and down in a scrutinizing manner. "I don't like her."

EJ's face hardened.

"Why don't you go and help Aunt Maria in the kitchen?" Tony suggested. The girls walked away cautiously. Tony rolled his eyes at them. "Allez! _**(Go!)**_"

The girls ran into the kitchen. Tony turned back to EJ.

"What sweet little girls…" EJ started.

"Don't give me that crap, EJ. I know exactly what you were thinking," Tony snarled. "What do you want with my wife?"

"I just wanted to talk to her…" EJ said seductively. "Of course, I could talk to you instead…" She walked closer to Tony.

Tony stepped away from her. "No, you can't talk to me. Not in the way you're suggesting."

EJ narrowed her eyes. "Why are you picking an Israeli slut over me?"

Tony fumed. "Israeli slut? Who the hell are you to call my wife a slut? You've walked into my house, acted as if you're actually _welcome _here, and now you have the nerve to call my wife a slut?"

"Well, you deserve more than her. Those two were an accident, weren't they?"

"Get out of my house," Tony demanded, holding down his anger as best he could even though his temper was shortening rapidly. "And if you come anywhere near any of my family, NCIS or biological, I will personally hunt you down with all fifty of my wife's Mossad knives. Understood?"

EJ glared at him. "You're threatening me?"

"I don't love you like I do Ziva." Tony glared at the blonde woman staring at him in shock. "I don't want you to ever set foot in my house again. Otherwise it won't just be me hunting you down."

EJ laughed. "Oh? And who else would help you?"

"Gibbs, McGee, Abby, my frat brothers and their families, and, if I convinced him hard enough, the Director." Tony smirked. "You'd be fired."

The smile dropped off EJ's face.

"Plus, my seventeen year old sister-in-law knows how to handle a gun pretty well." Tony smirked as Maria appeared at the kitchen doorway, leaning on the doorframe and twirling a knife in her hands. EJ turned to see what he was laughing at.

"I also throw knives." She smirked. "I never miss a target."

EJ chuckled. "You don't scare me."

A knife whistled past her head, and as soon as EJ turned her head back a knife was being held at her throat.

"You scared now?" Maria asked. EJ gulped.

"Get out," Tony spat from behind her. "And we won't be forced to leave a permanent mark."

EJ growled before storming out of the house. As soon as the door slammed, Maria turned to Tony. She grinned.

"Let's have dinner!"

* * *

><p><strong>Yes, I decided to bring out an evil side in EJ.<br>Review!**


	23. Christmas Visits

**Here's the next chapter, people! Enjoy it!**

* * *

><p><strong>CHRISTMAS DAY<strong>

Tony groaned as he woke up to someone bouncing on the bed before turning over and trying to fall back asleep.

"Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!"

Tony sighed. He wasn't going to get some sleep.

That thought was confirmed when the curtains were drawn and the covers were pulled off. Tony sat up and shivered.

"Jeez, girls! Could you not see I was sleeping?"

TJ and Kate laughed as they sat down on the bed. "It's Chwistmas, Daddy!" Kate exclaimed.

Tony smiled. "Is it really?"

"Yeah! And it's snowing too!" TJ added, pointing at the window as if to prove her point. "Weally weally hard!"

Tony laughed. "That's good then." He smiled at the twins. "How about we go open our presents?"

TJ and Kate's faces lit up. "Yay!" They jumped off the bed and raced downstairs to the Christmas tree that Gibbs had put up. Tony put on an old NCIS t-shirt over his singlet and joggers and grabbed the video camera before heading downstairs to see the twins staring at all the presents under the tree. As soon as he got down, he turned it on and focused it on the twins.

"Wow!" TJ whispered before reaching for the first one.

"Wait for Maria," Tony warned before looking up the stairs to see if she was coming down. She was, in fact, walking down the stairs at that very moment wearing a bathrobe over her pajamas.

"Merry Christmas!" she greeted.

"Mewwy Chwistmas Auntie 'Ria!" the twins chorused before reaching for the presents and grabbing the ones that belonged to them. TJ held up her present to show Tony.

"Look! Dis wun from Auntie Andy an' Uncle David!" she explained, repeating what Maria had told her.

Kate gasped. "Dis wun from Santa!"

Tony smiled. Both he and Ziva had decided to keep to Kate and TJ believing in Santa, but they also made sure that they knew that other people gave them presents as well. They both felt that it would make the realization of Santa not being real a lot less hard to deal with in the long run.

TJ gasped as she opened her present to reveal a couple of books. "Daddy, look!" She held them up for him to see and Tony turned the camera onto it.

"That's real nice, T."

TJ grinned. "Yeah! I'm gonna wead like a big girl now!"

Maria chuckled. "Of course you are, Tali."

Kate gasped when she opened hers. "It's a doll!" She ripped open the box and pulled out a Baby Born doll wearing a pink outfit with a pacifier in its mouth. She smiled. "This my baby! Just like Momma's!" she exclaimed.

TJ reached for her present from 'Santa' and ripped it open, expecting to see a doll in hers as well. She was surprised when she didn't get one, and cocked her head to the side in curiosity. "Wha' dis?"

Maria smiled. "It's a dog."

TJ frowned and held the brown stuffed toy with a blue collar at arm's length, eying it critically. "A dog? Dis don' look like a dog!"

"It's a toy dog," Maria explained.

"Oh." TJ smiled. She pulled it to her and hugged it. "He cuddly!"

Tony and Maria laughed.

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><p>After opening all of their presents, Tony gave the twins a bath as Maria made their breakfast. After bathing the twins, he showered before dressing and carrying the girls downstairs in the new Christmas jumpers that Rebecca had gotten made them with a pair of thick trousers and socks – green for Kate and blue for TJ – that Abby had bought them. Their hair had been tied into pigtails, as requested – no, demanded – by TJ, and they had huge grins on their faces.<p>

They smiled even wider when they smelt their breakfast. "Pancakes!" they squealed before wriggling out of Tony's arms and running to the dining table. Maria smiled as she brought the plate of pancakes to the table and placed it in the middle next to the syrup.

Tony walked into the room to see the table already set, with cups of orange juice for the twins and glasses of juice for him and Maria.

He smiled when he saw TJ struggling to get up onto the chair, and lifted her onto it. He placed the patiently waiting Kate on her chair as well before sitting on his.

TJ picked up her fork eagerly. "Yum."

Maria laughed as she placed a pancake on the little girl's plate and put a little syrup on before cutting it up for her. "There you go."

TJ had a forkful. "Thank you," she said with her mouth full.

Tony shook his head as he cut up Kate's pancake. "TJ, what have we told you about manners?"

TJ swallowed the food. "Don' tawk wif your mowf full."

"That's my girl." Tony finished cutting up Kate's plate.

"Thank you," Kate said before digging into her pancake.

Tony smiled at her and took a bite of his pancake before making a sour face. Kate and TJ laughed at him.

"What's wrong?" Maria asked, putting on an innocent face. Tony glared at her.

"Somebody put loads of lemon juice on my pancakes."

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><p>Ziva sighed.<p>

She was alone this Christmas.

For two whole years she'd managed to spend it with her family, but this year she was alone.

Well, not completely alone – she had baby Anthony with her.

She stared out of the window in her room, watching the snow as it fell softly to the ground outside. It had started a good two or three hours ago, so it was now covering everything outside by about an inch or so. She touched the window gently, wanting to go outside and feel the snow landing on her skin.

Of course, the nurses probably wouldn't let her leave Anthony behind, and they certainly wouldn't let her go outside with him. He was only four days old.

A knock on the door brought her from her thoughts. She sighed without thinking.

"Come in."

A few seconds later, some arms were wrapped around her waist from behind and a head was resting on her shoulder.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Ziva smiled. "I did not think you were coming for Christmas, honey."

Tony smiled. "Well, I thought you would be lonely." He kissed her cheek gently. "And I didn't come alone."

Both of them turned to the door where a group of people were standing. Kate and TJ walked forward with presents in their hands.

"Mewwy Chwistmas, Momma," they chorused as they held out the presents to her. Ziva smiled and took them.

"Thank you, Caitlin and Tali." She placed the presents on the bed and looked up at everyone. "Thank you, all of you."

Abby shrugged. "It's only fair. You're my best friend, Ziva, and best friends do stuff for each other."

Ziva walked up to Abby and hugged her. "And that is why you are my best friend."

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><p>Ziva sat on her bed and cradled the sleeping baby in her arms.<p>

Her day had turned out to be brilliant, mainly due to the fact that her family and friends had come to spend it with her. She'd also gotten a multitude of presents.

Kate and TJ had each gotten her a box of chocolates, although TJ's just so happened to be bigger than her sister's. _Another inherited trait – need to be competitive_, Ziva noted mentally.

She had also gotten some jewelry from the rest of her family and friends, and also some nice shirts and shoes. But she wasn't the only one who received presents.

There had also been presents for baby Anthony, most of them being little onesies that were either white, cream, blue or red. Half of them also came with little hats, mittens and socks for him to wear, which Ziva thought were absolutely adorable.

A knock on the door brought her back to reality. "Come in," she called out.

Gibbs' head poked around the door before he walked into the room, shutting the door behind him. "Hey, Ziva."

Ziva smiled. "Hello, Gibbs."

Gibbs joined her on the bed. "How's he doing?" He reached over and gently stroked the baby's cheek.

Ziva smiled. "He still sleeps a lot, although it has only been four days so I should be expecting it." She looked up at Gibbs. "Would you like to hold him?"

Gibbs raised an eyebrow at her before holding out his arms to take the baby from her. Ziva handed over the little boy. Gibbs smiled.

"Anthony Jethro…" Gibbs whispered.

"So that he may be as strong as you," Ziva explained. "It has a nice ring to it. Anthony Jethro DiNozzo."

Gibbs smiled. "Yeah, it does." He stroked the little boy's head. "My first grandson…" he whispered.

Ziva smiled. "Hopefully the first of many – not that I will be having many more sons."

Gibbs smirked. "Nah, if he's anything like his father he'll be more than enough."

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	24. The Fight Over DiNozzo

**Hello, faithful readers! This chapter was originally written before the previous one, but I decided to post it up later because then it would make more sense. I was also gonna post this up a couple of days later, but one of my readers just so happens to be on of my best friends, who also has me on email and facebook, so she's been pestering me so much...  
>Anyway, this chapter is mostly for those EJ haters.<br>Enjoy the chapter!**

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><p><strong>1 month later<strong>

Ziva sat at her desk, reading the same book she'd been reading for the past week from the beginning. Again. Little baby Anthony was being taken care of by his father for the day, so Ziva had decided to come into work. Due to the fact that McGee and Abby were still on their honeymoon – they weren't due back for another two days – Team Gibbs was piled mile-high with paperwork. It wasn't fair that Gibbs and Tony had to do it all…

Ziva looked up from her desk when she heard footsteps entering the bullpen, not wanting Gibbs to catch her lounging again.

"Nice try, DiNozzo."

Ziva huffed. "I just wanted a little break, Gibbs."

"I think half an hour is enough for you, Ziva. Get back to work," Gibbs commanded as he walked over to his desk with his most recent cup of coffee. Ziva sighed and got back to her paperwork, finishing off what she had already started.

When she got halfway through her work, she heard her computer make a pinging sound, signaling that she'd received mail. Ziva looked up at her computer and opened up the email and smiled. It was from Andy. It read:

_Hey, Ziva!  
>Hope you're ok. Tony told me you were going into work today, so I decided to email you rather than call you.<br>You know, it's been ages since we last spoke. Next time I come round, I'll bring a cake. ;) Anyway, it's just nice to talk to you again. Little Daniel's doing really well – he's quite big, you know! And so is David – he's surviving. I hope little Tony Jr. is doing well – when we last saw him in hospital, he was tiny! He must be bigger now.  
>Anyway, nice to talk. See you soon!<br>Oh, and we're throwing a birthday party for David this weekend. I hope you and Tony can make it!  
>Love,<br>Andy_

Ziva smiled. It was nice to hear from her friend again. She quickly began typing up her response:

_Hi, Andy!  
>I am fine thank you, and I hope you are well also. I am currently doing some paperwork, but Gibbs won't mind me emailing you. It is a good thing you aren't calling me though – I would be in a lot more trouble.<br>I know, it has been quite a while, but I might call you tonight. I am glad little Daniel is doing very well, and in fact Tony Jr. is growing very quickly. You can always see that little spark of intelligence in his eyes… it is going to be torture when he starts to talk. It must be the same with Daniel, since he has two very intelligent parents.  
>Anyway, I shall speak to you soon. And Tony and I will make it for the party – I just know it!<br>See you soon,  
>Ziva<em>

Ziva sent the message to Andy before turning back to her paperwork. Gibbs shook his head.

"You might as well have a mothers' meeting," he joked.

Ziva chuckled. "Not yet, Gibbs. So far there are only three mothers in that club."

Gibbs smirked, finishing yet another piece of paperwork and putting it in the huge pile of finished files. He went to take another sip out of his cup, only to find that it was empty. He sighed and got up. "I'm going for coffee."

Ziva frowned. "I thought you just went?"

"I was checking up on your husband, Ziva." He got up. "Make sure you do your paperwork."

Ziva nodded as Gibbs left the bullpen. A few minutes later, she heard footsteps re-entering the bullpen. "Are you back already?" Ziva looked up expecting to see Gibbs, but instead stood a blonde woman. Ziva frowned. Who was she?

"Uh, excuse me, who are you?" Ziva asked, trying not to sound rude.

"You don't need to know my name, Ziva. I've just really wanted to talk to you." The woman grinned evilly.

"We will not talk until I know your name," Ziva demanded. The woman perched on Tony's desk and started twirling one of his pens around her fingers. It was then that she realized her arm was in cast.

"My name is Erica Jane Barrett, but you can call me EJ." She looked up at Ziva. "I know that your name is Ziva DiNozzo, so you don't need to introduce yourself."

The name rung a bell in Ziva's mind. "Did you work with Tony for that mission last month?" she asked.

EJ smiled evilly. "Yes, I did." She stood up. "In fact, I came to talk to you about that." She perched herself on Ziva's desk. "You see, Tony is a very… _handsome_ guy, but he doesn't look like the type to stick around with one woman for half a century."

Ziva narrowed her eyes. "What are you trying to say?"

"I'm just trying to say that if Tony happens to break up and divorce you, I'm next on his list." EJ smirked. "I was just warning you. One mistake, and you and your kids are out the window – just me and my Tony."

"Your Tony?" Ziva stood up. "_Your_ Tony?" By now she'd gotten everyone in the office's attention. "What do you mean, _your_ Tony? He is _married_ to me!"

EJ chuckled. "Just because he's married to you doesn't mean he's yours."

"Lawfully, it does."

"Since when did you care about the law?" EJ got up so that she was level with Ziva. "An ex-Mossad assassin, married to an ex-cop. Don't you think there's something a little fishy about that?" EJ gave Ziva another evil smile. "Tony should marry someone with morals. That means, he's mine."

"He promised to be mine, for forever and a day," Ziva said, quoting what he'd said on their honeymoon.

"That was a false promise." EJ leaned into Ziva. "Men aren't all about honesty. They tend to lie."

In that moment, Ziva decided to do the one thing she did to people that got into her personal space without permission when she hated them to EJ.

She sucker punched her.

EJ reeled back, the shock of being punched knocking her into Tony's desk. She blinked a couple of times, and Ziva took this as a chance to walk out from behind her desk and lean over EJ.

"That was for trying to get me to stop loving my husband," Ziva snarled. The whole of the office had crowded round the bullpen by now, and some people had got out their camera phones to record what was happening.

EJ got up. "I'm claiming what is rightfully mine!"

"No, he is mine!"

"He will be mine!"

"He has been, and always will be, mine!"

EJ growled. "Don't make me take off my shoe!"

Ziva unsheathed a knife from her ankle holder. "I have a _knife_ in my hand." She smirked. "Let's see what happens when you take off your shoe!"

* * *

><p>"I'm home!"<p>

"Momma!"

Ziva smiled as she was greeted by the identical twins, the same yet different in so many ways. It was so easy to tell them apart. "Hello, my little angels. Have you been good for daddy?"

"Yes, momma," they answered.

"Good." Ziva walked into the living room, where she heard Tony and Maria talking. As she entered, both of them looked over at her.

"Hey, Zi…" Maria gasped. "What happened to your face?"

Tony passed the sleeping baby to Maria before getting up and examining Ziva's face. Ziva tried to squirm away as he did so, but he had a firm grip. His hand ran over the bruise in the shape of a heel just under her eye.

"One inch higher and you would've been blind…" Tony muttered. "Who did this?" he asked.

Ziva pulled her head out of his hands. "If I told you, you would not believe me."

"Yes, I would."

Ziva looked Tony in the eyes. "It was EJ."

Tony stared for a few seconds. "That b…" He sighed.

"Do not worry. She should be gone now." Ziva smiled. "The Director found out everything that happened and got her on the next plane back to Spain. Once she is there, she will be admitted into hospital."

"Hospital?" Tony raised an eyebrow.

Ziva smirked and pulled out the knife she had used on EJ, as well as showing Tony her bruised knuckles. "You do not think she would have gotten away with insulting me, do you?"

Tony laughed. He loved his family.

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	25. Papa Returns

**Hey readers! Hope you've been good!  
>1111/11 - a special day that happens every 100 years. Remembrance day, a day to remember all those soldiers who died for our freedom...  
>So, it's my BBF's birthday today, and I thought I'd update just for her, because I don't think I'll have updated otherwise.<br>Anyway, enjoy the chapter! And Happy birthday, Mukta!**

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><p><strong>2 years later<strong>

The plane landed on the ground, bringing the passengers down and landing them in the country of the United States of America. An Israeli woman, probably in her fifties or so, looked over at her husband who had taken the window seat. Or what would have been the window seat, if they had not been sitting in world class.

"Husband?"

The man looked over at her. "Yes, Rosalina?"

She smiled a little. "We have arrived."

He turned and looked out the window. "I suppose we have."

Rosalina got out her phone and dialed a very familiar number, putting the phone to her ear.

"_Hello?_" came the voice down the line.

"This is Rosalina David." She looked over at her husband. "The Director of Mossad has arrived in America."

* * *

><p>Maria smiled as she picked up the two year old that was currently trying to run manic through the whole house. "Anthony! Stay still!"<p>

Little AJ DiNozzo giggled before continuing to run through to the kitchen. "No!"

Maria sighed and grabbed the little boy. "It's bath-time, buddy."

AJ squirmed in her arms. "No!"

"You can take your toy boat into the bath."

AJ seemed to consider this. "Bath!"

Maria laughed. "Alright then." She frowned when she heard the phone ringing.

She was alone at home with AJ, since Tony and Ziva were at work at the Navy Yard and Kate and TJ were at school, although Maria was on her holidays, taking a week out of college to relax before heading back, so she wasn't exactly expecting anyone to call. Everyone who would usually call Ziva knew that she was at work, so they would either call her mobile or send her an email.

She picked up the phone, holding AJ on her hip with one arm. "Hello?"

"_Maria?_"

Maria nearly dropped the phone in shock. "M-mom?" She looked at the little boy on her waist, who was staring at her in curiosity, before turning her attention back to the phone. "W-why are you calling? It's three in the afternoon. Won't it be really late over in Israel?" She made her way upstairs to bath AJ.

She heard her mother chuckle. "_I am not in Israel, my daughter._"

Maria paused on the way upstairs. "Not in Israel?"

"_No, I am not. In fact, I am in America. In Washington DC._"

Maria choked on the air in her throat. "In W-W-Washington?"

"_Yes, I am. Your father and I are on our way to what you all call the Navy Yard._"

Maria smirked. "Really?" Ziva was in for a big surprise. It wasn't everyday that your step-mom came to where you worked. "Well, I'm at home right now…"

"_That is nice. Are you with your sister?_"

"You mean my _half_-sister, Ziva?" Maria placed AJ on the bathroom counter so that she could undress him. "No, she's at work." Maria slid AJ's t-shirt up over his head. "Why?"

"_Ah, so she is at work._"

Maria frowned. "Why is this so important?" She paused. "You're not going to go looking for her, are you?" The phone cut on the other side. Maria sighed and focused her attention back on AJ. "Your mommy's gonna be in for a big surprise, isn't she?"

AJ cocked his head in confusion before grinning with the few teeth he had. "Bath!"

* * *

><p>Ziva sat back at her desk and closed her eyes.<p>

She'd been doing paperwork for at least two hours straight, and things like that took a toll on the pregnant woman.

Yes, Ziva was pregnant. Again. She was in her thirty-first week, and there was only one week left until Christmas. The tiredness was already setting in, mostly due to the fact that she was always dumped with the paperwork but it could have also been due to the fact that she had three rambunctious kids at home.

"You asleep, Ziva?"

Ziva opened her eyes slowly at the sound of Gibbs' concerned voice. "I wish I was. I am exhausted."

Gibbs smiled. "Why don't you take a nap in the lab? The futon is down there, and Abby's replacement won't mind."

Ziva shook her head. "You still refuse to call her by her name?"

"To me, she'll always be Abby's replacement."

Ziva chuckled. "I don't want to take a nap in the lab, anyway. I would rather take one here."

"Wouldn't that be uncomfortable, honey?" Tony looked up from his pile of paperwork.

McGee looked up as well and nodded. "Yeah. You'd be better off in the lab."

Ziva shook her head. "I will not go down to the lab."

"Ziva…"

"Special Agent Gibbs!"

All three agents looked up to the catwalk, where to Director was standing. Gibbs sighed before going to join the Director on the catwalk, taking steps two at a time.

"Yeah, Vance?" he asked as soon as he got up there.

The Director beckoned him closer. "Your team has been chosen for protection duty. You've done it before, so I chose you."

Gibbs frowned. "Protection duty?" He looked down at his team. "I thought we were all on desk duty because of Ziva?"

"Being one agent down shouldn't harm you, Agent Gibbs," the Director pointed out. "You've done it before. You've even been _two_ agents down a couple of times."

"Those were one-offs, Director," Gibbs sighed. "Ziva was too tired to come into work, and Tony had to look after the kids because Maria was at school and they all had chicken pox."

Director Vance sighed. "Agent Gibbs, your team has already been chosen for this due to experience. You can't back out now."

Gibbs turned back to the Director. "Who are we meant to be protecting anyway?"

The elevator dinged, and the three agents in the bullpen as well as the agent on the catwalk turned to see who was coming out of the elevator. All three agents gasped.

"D-d-dad?" Ziva stuttered.

The Director of Mossad walked into the bullpen and smiled at his daughter. "Hello, Ziva."

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	26. StepMoms, and Guests?

**Here's the next chapter, readers! Enjoy!**

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><p>Tony would have fainted had it not been for the young woman standing next to Eli studying him.<p>

She had dark hair and had the same dark brown eyes as Maria. She had firm lips, which matched the smile Tony knew all too well. She had a slim figure, one that said, '_I've had kids, but you'd never notice._'

Eli noticed Tony staring at the woman beside him. "Agent DiNozzo?"

Tony quickly turned his attention to the man. "Yes da-Director?" he asked.

Eli motioned over to the woman. "This is my wife, Rosalina David."

Tony held out his hand to shake hers. "A pleasure to meet you, Mrs David."

Rosalina smiled. "Oh no, the pleasure is all mine, Mr DiNozzo. It has been a great wish of mine to meet the husband of my step-daughter." She turned to Ziva. "And you are looking very well, Ziva."

Ziva smiled. "Thank you, Rosalina."

Rosalina sighed. "She will never call me 'mother'." She looked up at Tony. "He is a very handsome man – not very young, but very handsome." She grabbed Tony's chin and pulled him down. "What a lovely husband."

"Rosalina!" Ziva exclaimed.

McGee sniggered. Tony just looked to Ziva for help.

Ziva sighed. "Father, please?"

Eli smiled. "Rosalina, would you please leave my son-in-law be?"

Rosalina patted Tony's cheek before moving away from him.

"So, how are the children, Ziva?" Eli asked his daughter. "I see you are soon to have another." He motioned at Ziva's swollen stomach.

Ziva smiled and rubbed her belly fondly. "They're fine. Tali and Caitlin have started school now, and AJ is talking so much more…"

Eli frowned. "AJ? Who is AJ?"

"He's our son," Tony explained. "He's turning three next week."

Eli's eyebrows rose. "Ah. And the AJ stands for…"

"Anthony Jethro," Ziva answered. "His father and grandfather."

Eli looked a little confused when Ziva said 'grandfather', but nodded anyway. "So, will I ever get to meet this Anthony Jethro?" he asked.

Tony and Ziva looked at each other uncertainly.

* * *

><p>Maria pushed the stroller with the crying boy inside it. She sighed. He was agitated, a sure sign of tiredness. TJ and Kate skipped next to the buggy, trying to tell Maria all about their day at school.<p>

"And then Peter got all the sand and…" Kate started.

"And I made a new friend today, Aunt Maria!" TJ exclaimed. "His name is…"

"And then he dropped it down Gregory's top and…" Kate continued.

"His name is Alex, and he's a nice guy…" TJ explained.

Maria's head spun. How was she meant to keep up with these two talking all the time? She finally cracked when AJ let out another cry.

"Stop!" she yelled.

Both TJ and Kate shut their mouths. AJ's crying died down a little.

Maria took a deep breath before speaking. "I can't understand a word you're saying when you're both speaking at the same time," she explained. "And AJ is tired, so keep it down you two."

The twins nodded and continued their speaking, talking quietly instead. Maria would have breathed a huge sigh of relief when she reached the house had she not noticed the two cars parked in the driveway. She frowned. Ziva and Tony wouldn't usually get back until a little later, and she didn't know who the other car belonged to. She shrugged. They must have guests.

She walked up to the front door and opened it, letting the twins inside first before pushing the stroller in behind them.

"We're home!" she called out.

"In the living room!" Maria heard Tony call out.

The twins hung their bags on small pegs that Tony had made for them before running into the living room. Maria smiled as she lifted a sleepy AJ from the stroller. The little boy blinked heavily before resting his head on Maria's shoulder as she placed him on her hip, falling asleep not long after. Maria pushed the stroller into the cupboard just beside the front door before carrying AJ into the living room.

She froze when she saw who was in there.

Eli David looked up from the sofa at the young woman carrying the sleeping child. "Hello, Maria."

Maria was at a loss for words. "M-mom? D-d-dad?"

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	27. Spaghetti and Languages

**Hello readers! Sorry for the long wait, but here's your next chapter!**

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><p>Rosalina and Eli raised their eyebrows at Maria's shocked face.<p>

"Voi non hai pensato noi sarebbe venuto? _**(You didn't think we would come?)**_" Rosalina asked.

Maria shook her head. "No." She handed AJ to Tony. "I thought you'd stay in a safe house, with dad's job and all," she admitted.

"Well, Ziva and Tony invited us over for dinner," Rosalina said, smiling.

Maria turned to glare at Tony. "Really?"

Rosalina noticed the glare. "Do not be so harsh, Maria. It was a polite gesture. Did I teach you nothing?"

Maria was just about to answer to that when Ziva waddled in.

"Dinner is ready," she announced. She noticed AJ sleeping soundly on Tony's chest. "Shall I put him to bed?" she asked.

Tony shook his head. "I'll do it." He looked at the twins, who were sat in the corner of the sofa. "Why don't you two go and help momma set the table?"

The girls nodded before they scrambled to the kitchen after Ziva. Tony got up and took AJ upstairs to put him to bed. "Has he bathed yet?" he called out.

"Yes," Maria answered. "I did it before I went to pick up the twins, as I usually do." She sat on the sofa and watched her parents carefully.

Eli and Rosalina just stared back at her.

Maria sighed. "I don't know why you're here, but please don't do anything embarrassing."

Eli smirked. "Do not worry. I'm only here to check up on my two daughters and my grandchildren."

Maria rolled her eyes. "Sure you are." She got up. "I guess it's time for dinner anyway." She smiled. "I hope you like spaghetti!"

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><p>The table was silent as the family consumed their meal. Tony sat at the head of the table on one side, with Eli at the head on the other. On Tony's right sat Maria, TJ and Kate, and on his left sat Ziva and her step-mother, Rosalina.<p>

TJ was the first one to talk, inheriting the trait to fill a silence with talking from her father. "School was fun today, daddy."

Tony smiled. "Really?"

TJ nodded as she swallowed another mouthful of spaghetti. "Yup! I made a new friend! His name's Alex, and we played on the field together."

"Yeah, they were digging up the flowerbeds again," Kate added.

"Tali!" Ziva scolded.

"I wasn't digging up the flowerbeds!" TJ protested. "We were playing treasure hunt again!"

"And you dug up the flowerbeds!" Kate added.

"No I didn't!"

"Yes you did!"

"Girls!" Tony interrupted. "We're at the dinner table, please."

Rosalina frowned. "Why would a girl go digging up flowerbeds?"

"TJ's very… adventurous…" Maria explained. "And imaginative."

Rosalina nodded. "Ok. Do they know any languages?"

"Oui, on parles français aussi! _**(Yes, we speak French too!)**_" Kate babbled in French.

Rosalina smiled. "Ah… bilingual children…"

"They speak Italian and they understand Spanish as well," Ziva added. "I made sure that they learnt it."

Eli nodded in understanding. "Do they know any Hebrew?"

"Si, Aba _**(Yes, Father)**_" TJ answered, mixing her Spanish with her Hebrew.

Eli chuckled. "At least they are learning."

"I wanna learn German too," TJ muttered.

The rest of the table laughed.

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><p>Tony sleepily walked into AJ's room, going to answer the cries of the two year old little boy. He switched on the lights and spotted the little boy standing in his crib, rubbing his eyes and bawling.<p>

"Shhh…" Tony said as he walked over to the crib.

AJ looked up at him with wide eyes. "Papa!" He held out his arms to him.

Tony picked up the little boy. "Shhh, AJ. It's ok, buddy."

"Papa!" AJ wailed.

Tony rocked the boy. "Shhh, I'm here. Papa's here."

AJ sniffled. "AJ 'cared."

Tony kissed the little boy's head. "Don't be scared, AJ. Daddy's here." He moved to sit in the rocking chair that had been moved from the twins' room to AJ's. He sat the little boy on his lap. "Daddy's here, AJ."

AJ snuggled closer to his father, closing his eyes as he did so. The rocking motion he felt as Tony rocked on the rocking chair lulled him to sleep.

As Tony rocked the boy to sleep, a sudden thought hit him. _He hadn't spent a day alone with the kids yet._ He smiled as he thought about how he could spend the day with his children.

He would have to talk to Ziva about it in the morning.

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	28. Discussions and Fairytales

**Here's the next chapter, readers! Enjoy it! It's more of a filler chapter-ish...**

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><p>"A day out?"<p>

Tony nodded. "Yeah. Just think about it – me and the kids out together, eating ice cream…"

Ziva winced. "Somehow I feel that if you do anything with the kids it will turn into something disastrous."

Tony stared at her incredulously. "You don't trust me with our kids?"

Ziva sighed. "I do, it's just that…" She tried to think up an excuse. "Remember that time when you had to put the twins to bed, and you ended up going to bed agitated?"

Tony frowned as he tried to remember…

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><p><strong>FLASHBACK<strong>

"…_and they all lived happily ever after." Tony closed the book. "The end."_

_Kate clapped. "Yay!"_

_TJ smiled at her father. "Thank you for the story, daddy!"_

_Tony smiled at them and kissed both girls on their foreheads before heading towards the door. "Goodnight girls," he called out as he left the room._

"_Goodnight, daddy!" the twins replied._

_There was a moment of silence before TJ opened her eyes. "Daddy?" she called out._

_Tony popped his head back into the room. "Yes?"_

_TJ smiled at him from where she lay in her bed. "I love you."_

_Tony smiled at her. "I love you too," he replied before leaving the room again._

"_Daddy?"_

_Tony popped his head back into the room. "Yes, TJ?"_

_TJ smiled. "Kate loves you."_

_Tony sighed. "Tell Kate that I love her too."_

_Kate giggled in her bed._

_TJ's green eyes stared at her father. "Daddy?"_

_Tony nearly groaned. "What is it now, Tali?"_

_TJ sat up and held out a stuffed toy dog. "You didn't say goodnight to Coco."_

_Tony walked into the room and placed a kiss on the stuffed toy dog's face. "Goodnight, Coco." He turned and headed for the bedroom door, hoping to get to bed and get some good sleep._

"_Daddy?"_

_Tony groaned. "What?"_

"_When are you gonna get Mario Kart Wii for us?" TJ asked._

"_Now's not the time to talk about it, Tali."_

"_Oh. Ok."_

"_Goodnight." Tony turned to leave the room… again._

"_Daddy?"_

_Tony stopped in his tracks, agitated. "This had better be important, TJ, because I'm getting close to losing my temper."_

"_When's we gonna go to the theme park?" TJ asked innocently._

"_We'll talk tomorrow, TJ," Tony sighed. "It's time for bed."_

"_But –"_

"_Goodnight!" he said forcefully before walking out of the door._

"_Daddy?"_

"_What the fuck does she want now?" Tony muttered under his breath. Unfortunately, it was loud enough for TJ to hear him._

_She gasped. "I'm gonna tell momma you swore!" She jumped out of bed, aiming to reach the door before Tony could catch her or stop her in her tracks._

_Tony lost it. "That's it! If you two don't sleep now, you'll both be over my knee. Do I make myself clear?"_

_Kate pouted. "But it hurts, Daddy!"_

"_I'm gonna give you to the count of three," Tony growled._

"_But –" TJ started._

"_1…" Tony began._

"_Daddy…" Kate protested._

"_2…"_

_TJ ran back to her bed and jumped into it, covering herself with the covers. Kate hid under the covers as TJ did, not wanting to see the wrath of her father._

_Tony sighed with relief. "Finally! Goodnight!" He walked out of the room, not expecting to hear another sound._

"…_Daddy?"_

_Tony shut the door behind him, ignoring TJ's calls._

_Kate brought her head up from underneath the covers. "You made him mad…"_

_TJ pouted. "I didn't mean to. I just wanted some hot cocoa."_

**END OF FLASHBACK**

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><p>Tony bit his lip. "I'll get along with them better this time – promise!"<p>

Ziva sighed as she sat up fully. "Well, where would you take them?" she asked him. "Would it be somewhere educational?"

Tony raised an eyebrow at her. "Where would you consider educational?" he asked.

Ziva shrugged. "The Empire State Building?"

Tony frowned. "Would they even know how educational that would be?"

Tony shrugged. "Maybe… maybe not."

Ziva shook her head. "Please be certain before you go, Tony."

"I'm, I mean _we're_, definitely going," Tony said adamantly. "It's good for the kids to get out once in a while."

"Why can you not take them to the park like any normal parent?" Ziva sighed.

"Because I'm not normal."

Ziva raised an eyebrow at him.

"Ok, that came out wrong."

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	29. Empire State Nightmares

**Hey, reader****s! It's been a while, I know, but here's the next chapter! Enjoy it!**

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><p> <em>Tony walked into the building, three children hot on his tail. "Come on, kiddies! We've got a building to tour!"<em>

"_Coming daddy!" the three kids called out from behind him. They skipped up behind him and lined up in age order, from youngest to eldest._

_First came Caitlin Abigail, the eldest. Her long dark hair was tied into two plaits that came over her shoulders and were tied at the ends with green ribbons. She wore a green t-shirt with a pink flower in the middle and a pair of jeans with white trainers._

_Next came Tali Jennifer, better known as TJ, who was Caitlin's younger twin. Her dark hair was significantly shorter than her sister's, and it was tied into pigtails with blue scrunchies that bounced as she skipped. She wore a blue t-shirt with a flower in the middle, like her sister's, and a pair of jeans with white trainers._

_And finally came the youngest, Anthony Jethro, known as AJ to the 'dysfunctional Gibbs' family, or Team Gibbs as other agents would call them. He wore a red t-shirt underneath a pair of dark blue dungarees and white trainers, and he carried a teddy bear in red dungarees in his right arm as he toddled about. His brunette hair with dark streaks was left messily, reminding anyone who knew Tony of how he looked when he woke up in the morning. To everyone else, he just looked adorable._

_Tony smiled as he watched his children fall in line. "That's good. Now, remember what I told you?"_

"_Stay within daddy's line of sight at all times!" the three of them recited._

"_And…"_

"_Don't cause any trouble!"_

"_Good." Tony smiled at his little soldiers. They were all ready._

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><p>"<em>And this is the 50th floor…"<em>

_Tony rolled his eyes as the tour guide led them across another floor of the building, this time the fiftieth one. He sighed. He would die before they reached the top._

_And the annoying thing was, he wasn't the only one that was bored._

_It seemed that green eyes weren't the only thing that all three of his children had inherited, as none of them were paying attention to the guide. All three of them seemed more interested in looking out of the windows and trying to count how many cars of each possible color drove past excluding vans and trucks – according to Kate's rules. And in order for them to do so, Tony had to be watching them at all times. Which meant every time he looked away, Kate and TJ would demand he looked at them and watched them play._

_He was already regretting this trip._

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><p><em>AJ giggled as he looked around the room. He'd been playing with his older sisters, and now he just wanted to run around and have fun. As he turned his head, he spotted something. "Window!" He pointed at it.<em>

"_Yes, AJ, a window," Tony sighed._

_TJ grinned. "And one of those levitating window washer thingies!" Her eyes gleamed with excitement. "Can we go say hello to the man, daddy?"_

_Tony sighed. "Fine." He let go of AJ's hand and watched as they ran towards the window. He turned to the tour guide and listened to her drone on and on about the building, forgetting about what he had told his kids as soon as they had arrived._

_A few minutes later, he felt a tug on his jeans. He looked down to see Kate looking up at him. "What's up, Kate?"_

"_AJ and TJ crawled out the window."_

"_What?" Tony turned to where the window was quickly and nearly fainted when he saw the two kids on the swing stage that was outside the window and no window washer in sight. "Oh crap." He ran to the window._

_TJ waved at him. "Hi daddy!"_

_AJ giggled at the look of horror on his father's face._

"_How did you two get out there?" Tony asked._

"_The window was open, and AJ fell out," TJ answered. "Didn't you, AJ?"_

_AJ nodded._

_Tony was about to say something when his phone rang. He answered it. "DiNozzo."_

"_**What the hell are my children doing hanging off the side of the Empire State building?"** Ziva demanded._

_Tony frowned. "How did you…"_

"_**There is a news flash, Tony."**_

_Tony sighed. "Well that's just great."_

"_**Cut out the sarcasm, Tony!"**_

"_Ziva, calm down. You're pregnant, remember?"_

_Tony heard Ziva sigh on the other line. **"I know."**_

"_Just… calm down. I'll get them back."_

"_**How?"**_

Yes, how are you going to do this,_ a little voice in Tony's head asked._

"_I'll go out after them and bring them back inside," Tony explained. He could imagine the incredulous look Ziva would be giving him if she was standing right in front of him._

"_**Tony?"**_

"_Yeah, babe?"_

"_**You have finally lost it."**_

_Tony sighed. "Do you want your kids back or not?"_

_Ziva sighed._

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><p><em>Tony crawled out onto the swing stage. "TJ! AJ!"<em>

_TJ turned to look at her father from where she was sitting near the edge. "Hi daddy!"_

_Tony crawled over to her slowly, not realizing he'd mistakenly closed the window – his only way back inside – behind him. "What are you doing so close to the edge? Get over here!"_

_TJ crawled over to him and hugged him gently. "I'm sorry, daddy!"_

_Tony shushed her and rubbed her back gently. "It's ok, as soon as we get inside."_

_AJ turned at the sound of his father's voice. "Daddy!" He crawled quickly over to Tony and hugged him as much as he could with his small body._

_Tony smiled. "Hey, buddy."_

"_Uh, daddy?" TJ asked._

"_Yeah, T?"_

"_How are we going to get back inside? The windows are all shut."_

_Tony frowned. "What do you mean 'all shut'?" He turned to see the window he'd just crawled out of closed firmly. He gaped._

"_I told you, daddy," TJ teased._

_Tony took a deep breath. "Don't panic. We'll get inside eventually."_

"_Daddy?"_

"_Yeah, T?"_

"_You're panicking."_

_Tony turned to glare at the little girl. "TJ…" He spotted something, or more like someone, over TJ's shoulder. "AJ!"_

_AJ giggled as he tried to crawl towards the edge, his teddy bear in his hand. Tony reached past TJ and grabbed him before he could go over the edge, accidentally causing the little boy to drop his teddy bear in the process._

_The little boy whimpered as he watched his bear go down. "Teddy?"_

"_Teddy's gone now," TJ told her little brother as Tony set him down near the windows._

_AJ pouted before letting his lips quiver a little. TJ pulled the little boy into a hug, comforting him before any tears could spill._

"_It's ok. Daddy will get you a new one, right daddy?"_

_Tony was trying to find a way to open the window when TJ asked him the question. "Huh? Oh, yeah, I will." He gave up on trying to open the window and decided to pound on it to get someone's attention._

_Kate had been standing with the crowd when she'd heard the pounding on the window, and she turned to see her father outside on the swing stage with her brother and sister, banging frantically on the glass. She ran up to the window. "Daddy?"_

_Tony smiled gratefully. "Kate? Thank god!" He pointed at the little mechanism on the other side of the window. "Open the window!"_

_Kate looked at the mechanism and back at him. "What?"_

_TJ crawled up beside him. "He said open the window, Kate!"_

_Kate made an 'o' shape with her mouth and looked for the lever to open the window. She found it and tried to turn it, trying with all her might, but failing. She frowned. "Daddy, it's too hard! I can't do it!"_

_Tony thought quickly. "Get someone else to help you!"_

_Kate nodded and ran off, trying to find someone that could, and would, help. A few minutes later, she returned with a burly looking man. He was around six feet tall, with a lot of muscle, and he had a deep tan, as if he'd been in the sun for quite a long time._

_Tony gulped when he saw him._

_Kate smiled. "Daddy, this is Mr O'Reilly! He's going to help us!"_

_Tony smiled nervously and waved at the man a little. The man just glared at him, and Tony gulped._

_TJ grinned at the man. "He looks like a nice man, doesn't he, daddy?"_

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><p><em>Ziva pulled open the door suddenly, as soon as she heard the car coming up the driveway. She sighed with relief when she noticed there were four figures in the car – no more and no less. She quickly waddled down the driveway to the car. "Tony!"<em>

_Tony turned the car's engine off before climbing out of the car. "Ziva?"_

_Ziva leapt into his arms – despite being heavily pregnant. Tony squeezed her as much as he could, hugging her to his chest. They spent about a minute in the embrace before Ziva pulled away. She slapped his arm hard._

"_Ow!" Tony yelled in pain, but smiled sheepishly when Ziva glared at him. "They're all asleep in the car. They've had a long day, you know."_

_Ziva put her hands on her hips. "Yes, I know. It was all over the news." She smiled when she saw all three of them sitting in their car seats, heads tilted slightly to the slightly to the side as they dozed. She looked back at Tony. "No more days out alone with the kids._

_Tony put his hands up in surrender. "I promise..."_

* * *

><p>"Daddy!"<p>

Tony suddenly jumped awake, landing with a grunt on the floor as he fell face down. He blinked slowly as he lifted his head to see TJ and Kate standing before him – Kate with her hands on her hips, as her mother would do, and TJ with her arms crossed. Kate was the only one with a serious expression on her face, as TJ was smirking.

"You were sleeping on the couch again, weren't you?" Kate asked. Well, actually, it was more of a statement than a question.

"No, I was… resting with my eyes closed," Tony lied, hoping his daughters would buy it and leave him alone.

"So you snore when you rest?" TJ asked cheekily.

Tony glared at her, but she didn't flinch.

"Momma says you're not allowed to sleep on the couch because of your back," Kate pointed out.

"Well, Momma isn't here, is she?" Tony asked.

"She's in the kitchen," TJ said.

Tony froze. _Oh no…_

"Momma!" Kate screamed. "Daddy's been sleeping on the couch again!"

"I have not!" Tony argued before he could stop himself.

"Have too!"

"Have not!"

"Have too!"

"Have not!"

"Have too!"

"Stop it, both of you!" Ziva's voice interrupted the argument and brought it to a close as she stepped – or waddled, however you want to see it – into the living room. She raised an eyebrow when she saw Tony lying on the floor. "Kate, Tali, go upstairs. I would like to talk to your father alone."

"Ok." Both girls ran upstairs, having a conversation about how their father would be punished – slightly disturbing to Tony.

Ziva glared down at him. "What are you doing on the floor, Tony?"

Tony laughed sheepishly. "I… uh… fell of the couch?"

Ziva glared at him even more. "You fell asleep on the couch again?"

"Yeah, and I came to a conclusion."

Her brown furrowed. "About what?"

"You know I said I was going to take the kids out for a day?"

Ziva nodded.

"I think I'll be better off taking them to the Zoo."

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	30. Zoo Preparations, and 'Study Dates'

**Long time no see, readers! And it's all my fault, I know. But I've been studying a lot harder now, so I'll only be updating about once a month or so. Twice if I'm lucky. Plus, I've got all those other stories too... it's a bit much for my wee brain to handle. So, anyway, here's the next chapter. Enjoy it!**

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><p><strong>2 MONTHS LATER<strong>

"Mama!"

Ziva looked down at the little boy with green eyes and brunette hair that had natural dark highlights. "Yes, Anthony?"

AJ held up his sippy-cup. "D'ink."

Ziva raised an eyebrow at him. "What is the magic word?"

AJ thought for a little bit before grinning up at his mother. "Abwacadabwa!"

Ziva chuckled and shook her head at him. "No, I mean the other magic word."

AJ put on a puppy dog face. "Pwease?"

Ziva nodded. "Alright, then." She waddled over to the fridge and opened it. "What drink would you like? Milk? Water?"

"Jooce!" AJ exclaimed happily, lifting up his sippy-cup.

Ziva laughed. "Anthony, there is no j—"

"Special delivery for the DiNozzo household!" Tony walked into the kitchen with a grin plastered on his face carrying two grocery bags. Kate and TJ followed shortly after, each of them carrying one grocery bag. They grinned at Ziva.

"Hey, momma!" Kate greeted.

"We went grocery shopping!" TJ explained.

Ziva smiled. "I can see that."

Tony placed the bags he was carrying on the counter. "I hear the big man wants some juice!" He smiled at AJ. "Right, buddy?"

AJ grinned at his father. "Yes, papa!"

Tony pulled a one litre carton of apple juice from one of the grocery bags. "Only the best for my little man." He took the sippy-cup from AJ and poured it up to about halfway with apple juice before filling it up the rest of the way with water to dilute it. He handed the cup back to AJ. "Here ya go, bud."

AJ smiled. "Tank you, papa." He started drinking from it greedily.

Ziva smiled at her little girls. "How was the grocery shopping?"

TJ smiled. "It was fun!"

Kate nodded in agreement. "Yeah, but that lady at the till was staring at daddy's butt again."

Ziva's eyebrows rose. "Really?"

TJ nodded. "Yeah, but me 'n' Kate glared at her, and she looked away quickly."

Ziva smiled. "Good." She looked up at the clock. It was about eleven o'clock. "How about you two go and change so that you can go to the zoo today?"

Kate and TJ's eyes lit up. "Really?" They turned to their father.

Tony sighed. "It was meant to be a surprise, Ziva."

The twins cheered before running upstairs to change.

Ziva smiled at her husband. "So, off to the zoo you go."

Tony smiled. "Of course, honey. It'll keep them out of your hair for a couple of hours."

AJ burped.

Tony wrinkled his nose. "Eww, AJ!"

AJ giggled at the look on his father's face.

Maria walked into the room. She wore a blue _University of the District of Columbia_ t-shirt underneath a black hoodie with a pair of dark jeans and plain black trainers. Her usually curly hair was tied back into a ponytail with a blue scrunchie and she had a blue satchel hanging off her right shoulder, so her outfit looked… extremely casual.

Tony frowned. "Where are you going?"

"Study date," Maria replied as she walked into the kitchen and went straight over to the fruit basket. She grabbed an apple and took a bite of it. "Why?"

Ziva raised an eyebrow at her younger sister. "I did not know you had a study date."

"Yeah," Maria said once she'd swallowed her bite. "I'm going to the library with Brian."

Tony smirked. "Brian, eh?"

Maria glared at him. "We're friends, Tony. Nothing more."

Tony nodded. "Ri-ight."

Maria huffed and headed out of the kitchen.

"So I am all alone today, then?" Ziva called out.

Maria popped her head back into the kitchen. "Oh gosh, I forgot, Ziva." She moved to stand in the kitchen fully. "Well, Brian and I could always study here," she offered. "Or I could cancel with him…"

Ziva shook her head. "No, no, no! Just go with Brian." She smiled. "You deserve some time with him, and if you need to study then you need to leave the house, otherwise I'll order you around like my servant."

Maria cracked a smile. "You know, I think mom and dad are still in DC…"

"No!" Ziva and Tony yelled at the same time.

"Just go on your study date," Ziva sighed.

Maria smiled. "Thanks sis." She hugged Ziva. "See you tonight?"

Ziva nodded. "Of course."

Tony smiled at Ziva as he picked AJ up. "Well, this little guy needs to get ready – he's got a big day full of lions and tigers and bears – oh my!"

Ziva laughed. "Alright, Tony. I think I get it." She pecked him on the lips. "I will see you tonight, then."

Tony nodded. "Of course, honey." He smiled at her. "I'll take pictures!"

Ziva smiled. "I am looking forward to seeing them."

Tony smiled and pecked her on the lips. "I love you, honey."

Ziva smiled. "I love you more."

AJ wrinkled his nose. "Eww!"

Ziva and Tony laughed.

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><p>Tony carried the little boy in his arms upstairs. "Right, bud, let's get you dressed for the zoo!"<p>

AJ lifted his cup in the air. "Yay!"

Tony opened the door to the little boy's room.

The room was painted cream, with a red carpet floor and a large multicolored rug in the middle. All over the walls, paintings and crayon drawings in red were illustrated, as well as some small handprints: those of, TJ, Kate, and AJ, and also the kids of their close friends – Sarah Rebecca McGee (Abby & McGee's daughter), Aaron Samuel Ferral (Mukta & Arif's son), Jason Jared and Jodie Scarlett Buxton (Katie & Mark's twin children), Kensi Daniela Hudson (Rebecca & Matt's daughter), Daniel Isaiah Alchel (Andy & David's son) and Lisa Maire Mante (Daisy & Jude's daughter). The group of children had quickly become friends, with AJ becoming in charge due to his outgoing personality despite being the third eldest out of the group. All of the parents had decided to organize a play-date with all of the children at least four times a month, sometimes difficult, but always enjoyable.

In the far corner of the room stood one of the hand-made cribs that Gibbs had made for the twins, and inside it had a red blanket as well as a fluffy red teddy bear. Beside the crib stood a white wardrobe, also covered in red handprints – AJ had gotten a bit carried away with the hand-printing – which contained all of AJ's clothes. Opposite the crib, beside the door, stood a large wooden box that was painted red, blue green and yellow which was overflowing with toys.

Tony placed AJ on the rug in the middle of the room. "Let's get you something cool to wear."

AJ nodded eagerly.

Tony opened the wardrobe and started looking through for clothes for AJ to wear. Small t-shirts in white, red, green, yellow and blue hung in the wardrobe, along with pairs of dungarees in blue and red and pairs of brown and blue trousers. Pairs of striped socks were folded neatly on the top shelf of the wardrobe, and small pairs of trainers were lined up neatly on the bottom on the wardrobe, all of them either white, blue, red or black, as well as a pair of wellies.

"So, buddy, what color do you want to wear today?" Tony asked, turning around. He nearly laughed at what he saw.

AJ was walking around the room with a bucket on his head.

"Anthony?" Tony asked, trying to hold in his laugh.

AJ turned towards him. "Look, papa! I a mon'ter!" He held out his hands so that they looked like claws and started walking towards the wardrobe. "Rawr! Rawr!" He walked into the wardrobe door and fell back on his butt. "Ow!"

Tony burst out laughing as he took the bucket off AJ's head. "Anthony, buddy, I asked you a question."

AJ looked up at his father with bright green eyes. "Yes, papa?"

Tony smiled. "What color do you want to wear today, buddy?"

AJ grinned. "Wed!"

Tony laughed. "Are you sure?"

AJ nodded. "I vewy shaw, papa."

Tony nodded. "Red it is, then." He turned back to the wardrobe and picked out a white t-shirt, a pair of red dungarees, a pair of white and red striped socks and the red wellies. He picked up the little boy and took him to the family bathroom just across the corridor. "Let's get you changed, then."

After getting AJ into his clothes, Tony carried him downstairs to the living room, where his daughters were waiting.

Kate and TJ were wearing pretty much identical clothes, apart from the fact that they were different colors. They were both wearing snowflake jumpers, with Kate's being green and TJ's being blue. They were also wearing tracksuit bottoms with wellies, both of their wellies being bright red. Kate's hair was in its usual pigtails, the plaits hanging not far past her shoulders, whilst TJ's were in shorter pigtails that curled just above her shoulders.

Tony smiled at them. "Come on, get your coats on."

TJ and Kate raced to get their coats on whilst Tony put AJ's on for him. The little boy just waited patiently – a very rare occurrence unless he was excited – as Tony zipped up his coat for him and helped him to put on the boots. As soon as they'd finished, Tony smiled.

"Let's go to the zoo, kiddies!"

"Yeah!"

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	31. Zoos, Guns and Ambushes

**Here's the next chapter, people! Enjoy it!**

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><p>Tony smiled as he guided the three children into the zoo. AJ was holding his hand, trying his hardest to keep up with his father's long stride, skipping as he tried to keep up with him. Kate and TJ walked in front of them, arms linked in each other's arms as they walked and conversed about the latest toy out and who was most likely to get the most stickers in class.<p>

AJ gasped and pointed at one of the animals that they were passing. "Panda!"

Tony smiled. "Yeah, buddy. That's a panda." He looked up and noticed his daughters were still walking off. "Don't walk too far off, you two."

Kate and TJ turned to look at their father. "Yes, daddy." The girls continued on their walk around the zoo, making sure they were still in plain sight of their father and younger brother.

AJ ran up to the area where the zebras were and grinned. "Stwipy!"

Tony chuckled. "Yeah, they have loads of stripes, don't they?" He knelt down to the little boy's level. "Do you remember what those animals are called?"

AJ seemed to think for a little before breaking into a huge grin. "Zeebwa!"

Tony laughed. "Yeah, buddy. It's called a zebra." He ruffled AJ's hair. "Now let's go and see those birdies, yeah?"

AJ smiled. "Birdie, birdie!"

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><p>Everything started going wrong when they reached the bird house. Kate and TJ were viewing the kiwis, watching the baby ones and 'aww'-ing at them every time they walked past. Tony was with AJ watching the emu strut around its pen when he noticed someone enter the exhibit. Tony would have ignored him, had the slight bulge on his hip not caught his attention. The fact that he was wearing a black leather jacket with black trousers didn't make him look any less suspicious, and he seemed to be tanned with dark gelled hair. He didn't seem to be interested in any of the animals, just scanning the area for somebody.<p>

Tony's attention was pulled away from the mysterious man when he felt a tugging on his arm. He looked down to see AJ looking up at him.

"Hung'y," the little boy muttered. Tony nodded.

"Right, let's find the girls so that we can go for lunch, then." He took AJ's hand and was about to go and find the girls when he heard a scream.

Tony frowned. "Girls!"

The twins sped around the corner, racing towards him. They ground to a halt in front of AJ and Tony.

"Daddy… we saw…" Kate panted.

"A guy… with a g—" TJ continued, only to be cut off by the sound of a bullet being shot.

Tony's eyes widened. "Hit the deck!" he yelled throughout the exhibit, quickly bending down. The screams that followed were deafening as people started panicking. More gunshots went off, and Tony reached for the three children that were crouched on the floor beside him and hugged them to his chest.

* * *

><p>Maria smiled at the male sitting across from her. He had dark hair that hung around his ears and formed a curtain on his face, covering his forehead before being pulled to the side. He wore black rimmed glasses, and had a handsome face with bright blue eyes. He was slightly muscled, and wore a blue <em>University of the District of Columbia<em> sweatshirt with a pair of faded jeans and black trainers. His nose was currently in a biology book.

"Brian?" Maria asked.

The boy looked up at her. "Yeah, Maria?"

"I'm bored."

Brian chuckled. "Maria, we're meant to be studying."

Maria laughed lightly. "I know, I know. It's just…" She looked at her watch. "We've been studying for three hours straight without a break."

Brian sighed. "Maria, if we want to pass this exam, we have to study hard."

"We can't even have lunch?"

"When the time comes."

Maria smirked. "It's noon, Brian. You know, 1200 hours?"

Brian shook his head at her. He didn't really need to be reminded of his military heritage at that moment. "In an hour."

"Half an hour?" Maria bargained.

Brian sighed. "Fine." He was just about to go back to reading his book when he looked back up at Maria again. "If I fail this exam, it'll be all your fault."

Maria smirked. "I know."

Brian shook his head at her again.

The two were studying for a few more minutes when they heard footsteps approaching their table. Maria looked up to see a familiar red-head with hazel eyes smiling down at her, with a tall, brunette, American-Italian boy with green eyes standing beside her. The boy was slightly muscular, more so than Brian, and wore the same _University of the District of Columbia_ sweatshirt as him with a pair of grey joggers. His blonde hair was short and spiked up with hair gel, and his skin was tanned. The girl's red hair hung down to her hips, much longer than Maria's which only hung just past her shoulders. She wore a blue t-shirt, the same as Maria's, with a green hoodie and faded blue jeans with green converse.

"_Study_ date?" the red-head asked, a teasing tone to her voice.

Maria rolled her eyes. "Oh, shut up, Katie."

Katie smiled and sat down beside Maria. "Oh come on, we're best friends – we've been best friends for years."

Maria rolled her eyes again.

Brian looked up from his book. "I'm trying to study here."

Katie looked up at Brian. "Oh, sorry Brian." She then noticed the blonde boy was still standing. "Sit down, Andrea. _**(A/N: it's actually a unisex name – it's Italian for warrior. I personally did not know that...)**_"

The boy nodded and sat down beside Brian. "You guys getting ready for your big biology test, then?"

Maria nodded as she looked up from her book. "Big test. Don't want to fail."

Andrea nodded. "I've got a physics test at the exact same time."

Katie shrugged. "My chemistry test isn't until the day after."

Maria nodded and was just about to return to her book when Katie got her attention again.

"Hey, did you see those guys standing outside?" she asked.

Maria and Brian looked up at her. "What guys?" they asked simultaneously.

"You know – the guys standing outside asking for someone called Dah-veed, or something like that." Katie leaned in closer. "They look real scary."

Andrea nodded. "Yeah, they're big guys. Could take about ten men each in a fight and win. There are about five of them outside the library, all holding big guns." He turned to Brian. "What are those big guns called, you know, the machine guns?"

Brian shrugged. "There are many types. Could you tell whether they were heavy, medium or light?"

"They all looked pretty heavy to me," Katie pointed out.

"Katie, we're talking about the weight of the machine guns according to their groups, not how heavy they looked to you," Maria pointed out.

Andrea thought about it. "Two were light, two heavy and one medium." He thought about it. "They all looked pretty old to me, maybe 1960s?"

Maria thought about it and smiled lightly. It was at times like these that she thanked whatever God was up there that her friends all had military heritage – even if Katie didn't pay that much attention to anything but the handguns and the self-defense.

Maria looked at them sternly. "1960s guns, right?"

The other three nodded.

Maria thought about it. "Well, there's the HK21, Kk 62, Mendoza RM2, RPK and Stoner 63 for the light; MG3, NTK-62, SIG MG 710-3, PK, PKM and the Type 67 for the medium; and the HK25 for the heavy. _**(A/N: I literally had to Google all of this. Plus, I don't know if guns from the 60s would still be able to work, so sorry if I got it wrong)**_" She frowned. "Are you sure they were 1960s guns?"

Andrea nodded. "They all looked like antiques, but they looked like they would still be in working order – like they could still kill someone. They must've been kept well for years."

Then Brian frowned. "Hey, did you say they were looking for someone called Dah-veed?"

Katie nodded, then realization dawned on her. She turned to Maria. "Your surname sounds like that, doesn't it? It's spelt _David_ but it's pronounced _Dah-veed_, right?"

Maria nodded. "I don't have a clue why anyone would be looking for me though…" She then thought about it. "The only reason I can think of is that m parents are in town…" She put her head in her hands. "Oh, what've they done now?" she muttered.

Katie stared at her in shock. "Your dad's back in town?"

Maria nodded.

"Oh boy. Here comes trouble…"

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	32. Kidnappers and New Cases

**Hey, readers! Sorry it's been so long, but now I have finally managed to update. Anyway, I hope you like this chapter!**

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><p>Ziva walked into the living room wearing one of Tony's old Ohio State t-shirts (which surprisingly fit – she had to talk to Tony about that) with a pair of loose jogging bottoms and a pair of fluffy bunny slippers that the twins had gotten her last year for Mother's Day. Her hair was left down in loose curls, and she had a tired expression on her face as if she was tired of her pregnancy and wanted it to end already. Which she did.<p>

To be honest, she was extremely tired. Her back ached, her feet hurt, and she couldn't find a comfortable enough position to nap on the couch in anymore without nearly falling off or having to chase one of her children around the house. Having Maria around did help, but when she was out studying it was hard for her to take care of AJ alone.

She sat on the sofa and turned to TV on, changing it from a children's programme that it had been left on to a soap that she had grown to love over all three of her pregnancies and her maternity leaves. Just as she was about to relax and watch it, she heard the doorbell ring. She frowned. She wasn't expecting anybody, was she?

She slowly got off the sofa and waddled to the front door. Was this even somebody she knew? Forgetting to look through the peephole – something she would reflect on and regret doing sometime later – Ziva slowly turned the handle and opened the door.

Two men, both tanned as if they were from near Mexico or the Mediterranean or so, wearing leather suits with sunglasses, stood at the door, the one on the right taller than the one on the left. Seeing men with suits would not have scared Ziva, but what warned her was the fact that they were wearing sunglasses and it was nowhere near summer. She attempted to slam the door in their faces, only to have their feet block the door. So she did the next thing that came to her mind.

She ran.

Ziva raced up the stairs to safety, trying to go as far as she could being pregnant. She heard the door slam open and hit the wall as she reached the landing. She managed to reach hers and Tony's bedroom before the men could reach the landing and locked the door behind her, leaning back on the door and breathing heavily. Her eyes scanned the room before they landed on the cell phone on her bedside.

She had to call Gibbs.

She moved off the door and waddled quickly over to the phone, picking it up as she heard pounding on the door. Her mind went blank as she opened up the dialing pad. _What was his number?_ She racked her mind as the pounding got harder – more like a kick on the door than a fist pounding.

She quickly pressed 3 on speed dial and pressed the call button, only waiting two rings for him to answer.

"_Gibbs,_" came the gruff voice on the other line.

Ziva sighed with relief. "Gibbs, thank goodness." She turned when she heard the door crack as it was hit with another kick, and then turned back to face the wall.

"_Ziva, what's wrong?_"

Ziva took steady breaths to calm herself. "Gibbs, there are people coming to attack me. They're in the house now. I don't—"

The door finally broke under the pressure, and the two men came running in with guns in their hands.

Ziva's eyes widened. "Oh no…"

"_Ziva? Ziva! What's happening?_" Ziva could hear Gibbs running and getting his gun in the background.

Before she could answer, she was grabbed roughly from behind around her waist. She fumbled and dropped the phone by accident, dropping it on the bed instead of the carpet floor. "Gibbs! Help me!" she yelled in an attempt to grab the phone. The men pulled her further and further away, struggling as she kicked out multiple times and continuously screamed, "Help me!"

Finally, the shorter one had had enough. "Shut up, woman!" he yelled, knocking Ziva unconscious with the butt of his gun. He smiled at the silence. "Finally!"

The taller one let the woman hang limply in the other man's arms. He pulled out a cell phone from his back pocket and dialed a number. He smirked evilly as the person on the other end picked up.

"We have her."

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><p>Andrea peeped through the library window, watching out for the men that had appeared there earlier.<p>

Katie joined him. "Are they still there?"

Andrea nodded. "They've put their guns down, though." He frowned. "And one of them is speaking into a cell phone or something…"

Maria looked up from where she was sitting by a stack of books with Brian. The pair of them were reading on the different types of machine guns there were that had been made around the sixties… or around that time.

"Cell phone?" Maria asked. "They're civilized?"

Andrea snorted. "The men have to be at least a little modern."

Katie frowned. "Well, they're speaking urgently into the phone, so it must be something important."

Maria frowned thoughtfully. Katie's eyes widened at the look on her face.

"You're not going to do anything crazy, are you?" she asked worriedly. "Because the last time you made that face…"

"It was your idea to come along with me, Katie," Maria butted in. "But no, I'm not doing anything crazy. I'm just… trying to think about what they're doing…"

Suddenly, the man pulled the phone away from his ear and tucked it into his pocket. He seemed to grin a little, revealing a set of slightly yellowed teeth, before calling out to the rest of the men. The men seemed reluctant, but they followed the man into the black car they had turned up in and drove off.

Maria frowned. "What the…"

Katie frowned as well. "Well, that's weird."

Maria glared at her. "No duh, genius."

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><p>Tony kept his head down as he hugged the three children to his chest, steadying his breathing so that he could stay calm. The three kids were shaking, with AJ whimpering and Kate and TJ letting out silent tears, against his chest, giving him all the more reason to keep himself calm.<p>

The gunshots had stopped for about two minutes, but he was sure they'd start up again anytime. The gunmen were still in the exhibit. As were the innocent bystanders.

Suddenly, loud footsteps echoed around the exhibit. Tony tried to listen out to where the footsteps were coming from, but because the exhibit was so large he couldn't focus in which direction the footsteps were coming from. That was, until the footsteps were just around the corner from them.

Tony held his breath, and the three children automatically did so as well. The footsteps got closer… and then stopped. Another pair of footsteps headed at a quicker pace – more like a running pace – towards the first set of footsteps.

"Attesa! _**(Wait!)**_" yelled a male voice.

Tony frowned. It sounded Italian.

The other person sighed. "Che cosa? _**(What?)**_"

"Il capo ha chiamato appena. Siamo rifiniti qui. _**(The boss just called. We are finished here.)**_"

The other person seemed to sigh before taking a few steps away from the group. "D'accordo. _**(Alright.)**_" He muttered a few words into what sounded like a cell phone or a radio before walking off. The second set of footsteps joined him not long after, seemingly jogging to catch up.

As soon as they left, Tony and the kids held a huge breath they hadn't realized they'd been holding.

"That was close," TJ whispered.

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><p>Gibbs pulled up in front of the DiNozzo residence, making sure he wasn't making too much of a scene as to alert the neighbors – more specifically, Daisy and Jude next door with their little girl Lisa. He climbed out of the car and shut the door quietly, before heading up to the front door. He froze when he realized something was wrong.<p>

The front door was open.

He pulled his gun from its holster and carefully walked towards the house, entering cautiously. He looked around.

There were boot prints on the floor from where the men, or whoever had come after Ziva, had entered. The prints led to the stairs, and there were two different sizes – two different men. One set of footprints had a larger difference between the footsteps, suggesting that one man was bigger than the other. Gibbs followed the footsteps up the stairs, up to the top landing, where they suddenly started to fade. He frowned. The mud had already started to wear away, so now he would be less likely to know where the men went. Nevertheless, he followed what remained of the footsteps up to the door of the master bedroom, where they finally stopped. He looked up to find the door to the room broken, splinters littering the floor of the bedroom all the way until the bed.

_They must've stayed in the room for a while…_

He scanned the room for any signs of a struggle. Apart from the slight dent in the bed covers, there was nothing to suggest anyone had been in there.

Wait… _the dent…_

Gibbs walked over to the bed, where a cell phone lay, open. His eyes widened when he realized exactly whose phone it was.

It was Ziva's.

Gibbs reached for his cell and dialed a familiar number.

"_Hello?_" the person asked when they picked up.

"Meet me at the office. We've got a case."

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	33. Office Talks and Parents' Revenge

**Hey readers! I'm sorry for the long wait _and_ the short chapter, but the next chapter should be up soon as I'm on holidays now. I hope you en****joy it!**

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><p>Maria sighed as she dialed her brother-in-law's number, hoping he would pick up quickly. Luckily, he did.<p>

"_DiNozzo._"

"Tony?" Maria asked. "Can you pick me up?" She waited for his answer.

"_Uh… alright…?_" Maria could literally hear the gears running through his head as he tried to figure out why she was asking him.

She sighed. He'd been married to Ziva for nearly three years, and he was still as thick as ever. "Tony, I need a lift home."

"_Why?_"

"I don't feel safe taking the bus."

"_You 'don't feel safe'? Maria, what's going on?_"

Maria leaned back against the library wall and took a deep breath. "Tony, someone tried to come after me today. I want to live to see tomorrow."

"_Someone tried to come after you?_" There was sincere concern in Tony's voice – it was almost fatherly…

"Yeah," Maria answered into the phone. "So, can you pick me up?"

"_I'm on my way down to the office now, so I'll pick you up on the way. Is that okay?_" Tony asked.

Maria smiled. "Sure. You've got the kiddies, right? So I can take care of them for you."

"_Yeah, it'll be better than leaving them with Ziva…_" Maria heard Tony pause on the other line. "_Maria, have you heard from Ziva?_"

Maria frowned. "No. Why?" Then suddenly, it all clicked. The men searching for someone called _Dah-veed_, her parents arriving in town, the fact that no one had heard from Ziva… "Oh no…"

"_What is it, Maria?_"

Maria nearly dropped the phone in her hands. She couldn't tell him… no, she had to tell him. She was his wife. He had a right to know.

"_Maria?_"

"Tony, they have her," Maria whispered.

"_Who have who?_" Tony asked, clearly worried by now.

"The men – they have Ziva." Her voice went hard. "And my parents have something to do with it."

She heard Tony slam on the brakes, and he did it rather harshly if the little yelps in the background were anything to go by. "_They __**what**__?_"

Maria sighed. "Just pick me up. I'll explain on the way to the office."

"_I'll be there a.s.a.p. Maria._"

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><p>McGee sat in the office, holding his head in his hands. This was supposed to be his day off, when he finally got some much needed sleep after spending every day working at NCIS and taking care of his daughter and pregnant wife when he got home. So being called into the office on that day, at that time, wasn't the high point of his day.<p>

"McGee, wake up."

McGee looked up quickly when he heard his boss' voice ring throughout the otherwise empty bullpen. He sighed. "Where's Tony?"

"On his way," Gibbs answered.

As if on cue, Tony walked into the bullpen with Maria and the kids hot on his heels. The three children looked terrified, still in shock after what had happened earlier that day. Maria moved AJ into a more comfortable position on her hip as the little boy snuggled his face further into her neck.

"Right, McGee, grab your g—"

"No." Maria halted the male agents. "We need to talk."

McGee looked over at Gibbs for confirmation, who was looking at Tony with a raised eyebrow. Tony nodded, so Gibbs placed his gun on his desk. McGee took this as his cue to put his gear down and sit back in his seat.

Maria sighed and put AJ down on the floor. "There's something really important for you to know, Gibbs. It's about—"

"Ziva?" Gibbs sighed. "I know – she's gone."

Tony and Maria stared at Gibbs in shock.

"So you know that she's been kidnapped by some men, and that they work for someone who wants to get some revenge on my parents?" Maria asked.

Gibbs frowned. "How do you know?"

"They came after me today," Maria explained. She motioned to Gibbs' chair. "Sit down – we might be a while." She grabbed Ziva's chair from behind her desk and moved it so that she was sitting in the middle of the bullpen.

Gibbs sat at his desk and opened one of the drawers, pulling out three drawing pads and two sets of crayons before handing them to the kids. Kate smiled at Gibbs as she took the things gratefully from him. "Thank you, grandpa."

Gibbs smiled back at her as he turned to face Maria. His smile immediately dropped and he became serious. "What happened?"

Maria took a deep breath. "Well, earlier this afternoon, I went for a study date to the library with Brian…" She glared at Gibbs when she saw him smirking. "Anyway, Katie and Andrea joined us later, and they told me that there were men outside the library waiting for me. All we managed to find out were the makes of the guns they had – and they were all machine guns." She looked down as she remembered what happened next. "Then, one of the men spoke into a phone, and they just left… it was weird."

McGee frowned. "They just left?"

Maria nodded. "Uh huh."

Tony frowned. "Did those men look Italian by any chance?"

Maria frowned. "Yeah, they did." She frowned. "Why?"

Tony rubbed his face tiredly with his hand. "The same thing happened to us at the zoo."

McGee and Maria span to face him. "What?"

Gibbs rubbed his face. "Oh boy…"

"When were you planning on telling us?" Maria asked.

"Later," Tony dismissed the question. "But the men who attacked us spoke Italian. And they came after us. They were sent to do a job."

Gibbs sighed. "That explains why Ziva was taken." He nearly rolled his eyes at all the blank looks he received. "Someone wanted one of your family to hold them as hostage."

"Yeah, and I think I know why," Maria muttered.

McGee frowned. "Who?"

Maria looked over to McGee. "Someone wants revenge on my parents, and they're going to use us to get through to them." She turned to Tony. "When those men came after you, they were coming after the kids – not you."

Tony looked over at his children. "Then we have to keep them safe."

"And save Ziva," McGee whispered.

Gibbs nodded. "At all costs."

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	34. Tough Searching and Ziva's Update

**Hey guys! Here's your next chapter! I hope you like it!**

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><p>"McGee! Got anything?"<p>

"No."

Tony sighed and leaned back in his chair.

For the past two days, the agents had been working non-stop to find their pregnant female field agent. And for two days, they'd found nothing. They'd concluded the foot sizes of the men who'd kidnapped her, but they had nothing else. And this scared Tony. Maria had even tried to get in contact with her dad, Director Eli David, but he was either ignoring their calls or didn't have his cell on him, because he never answered any of their calls.

Tony groaned. It was hopeless.

_Riiing!_

Tony picked up the phone at his desk quickly, hoping for any news on his wife. "Hello?"

"_Hey, Tony._"

Tony's breath caught in his throat. It was Maria. "Got anything?" he asked hopefully.

"_No. Tony, he still won't pick up._" Tony could hear Maria's voice cracking at the end of her sentence.

"Hey, calm down. We'll find her, alright?" Tony was trying to convince himself now.

"_Alright._" Maria took a deep breath. "_I'll see if I can get in touch with my mom._"

Tony smiled. "Good idea – thanks Maria."

"_Hey, she's my sister too._"

Tony chuckled and ended the call, sighing as he put the phone down. He felt as if they weren't doing enough to find Ziva – as if he wasn't doing his job as a federal agent or a good husband.

"Hey."

Tony looked up to see McGee looking over at him.

"It's not your fault."

Tony frowned. "How did you…"

"Stop beating yourself up over it, Tony." McGee smiled at him softly. "It's not your fault."

Tony smiled at his surrogate brother. "Thanks, McGee."

"No problem." The younger agent nearly cursed as something came flashing up on his screen. "Dammit!"

Tony frowned. "What is it?"

McGee sighed. "Nothing."

"McGee!"

"I said it's nothing!"

"Let me see!" Tony jumped up and tried to look at McGee's screen. The younger agent tried to hide the screen from Tony, only to have the screen yanked in the Senior Field Agent's direction.

Tony frowned. "Nothing! It came up blank?"

McGee sighed. "The link from the camera to the feed was cut the time Ziva was kidnapped, Tony."

Tony nearly ripped the screen off its cables. "I can't believe it! I can f***ing believe it!" He turned to McGee. "Find the missing footage."

"Tony, I'm working as hard as I can to find it, but—"

"Then work harder!"

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs barked from the bullpen entrance.

Tony turned to the older agent. "Yeah, boss?"

"Conference room, now."

Tony followed his boss over to the elevator, and the duo waited for it to arrive before stepping in and waiting for the doors to close behind them. Gibbs waited for the elevator to start moving before flipping the emergency switch. He turned to his Senior Field Agent.

"What the hell is going on, Tony?" he demanded.

Tony shook his head, rubbing his hands over his face tiredly. "I… I don't know, boss…" He looked up at Gibbs, fear showing on his face. "What if… what if…" Tony couldn't finish the sentences.

"Hey," Gibbs said softly, turning Tony's face so that it was facing him. "Calm down."

"Calm down?" Tony closed his eyes and took deep breaths. "I'm calm, boss. It's just…"

"Yeah?" Gibbs asked, moving his hands away from Tony's face.

Tony took another deep breath. "It's the kids, boss. They… they keep asking me where their mother is."

Gibbs nodded. "Alright, DiNozzo. Get them to a safe place – one of your frat bothers' homes."

Tony nodded. "Alright, boss. Whatever you say."

Gibbs just shook his head. "I'm doing this for your benefit, Tony, not mine."

Tony smiled at his boss. "Thanks, Gibbs."

"No problem, DiNozzo." Gibbs flipped the switch and pressed the button so that they headed to the bullpen. "Go and make your calls."

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><p>Ziva groaned as she opened her eyes, hoping to be in a room that at least had proper lighting. Her hopes were crushed when she realized where she was.<p>

The room was a dark and damp room, with grey walls and a hard concrete floor, with only a small window on the far side of the room that only let a little light in. There was a door on the far side of the room, not far from the window, but it was bolted shut from the outside, and there was no handle to open the door anyway – just a keyhole. The ceiling was made out of concrete too, and in the far corner of the room water dribbled in and down the grey wall, staining it. And the fact that the whole room was made out of concrete made the room cold.

Ziva sighed as she rubbed her large stomach. She'd been in here for about two days now, and nothing had happened. Only a few men had come in, and they had only brought her scraps of food.

She looked up sharply when she heard the door being unlocked. She narrowed her eyes when she saw the tall, Italian man walking into the room. She snarled and sat up fully.

"What do you want with me?" she growled.

The man just chuckled as he strode over to Ziva, swinging a knife in his hands. "Oh, I just want to know something from you."

"And what would that be?" Ziva asked.

The man knelt down beside her and held the knife to her neck. "Where is your father?"

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	35. The New Agent: Agent McCoy

**Hello, my readers! I have the next chapter for you! Enjoy!**

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><p>She walked into the office nervously, a rucksack slung over her shoulder and her flats making a soft padding sound on the carpeted floor. She wished she didn't have to do this, but Vance requested it. And if Vance requested it, she had to do it.<p>

"Dead end!"

"Again? Come on, McGee! Do some of that hacking stuff you do best!"

"Shut up, Tony! I'm trying to concentrate!"

She walked into the bullpen. She really didn't want to be here. She felt as if she was writing her will. Although, she usually did that most of the time.

"Tony! Leave me alone!"

"I'm just trying to—"

"DiNozzo! Shut up and sit!"

"But boss…"

"Sit!"

"Hello?" The woman finally entered the bullpen nervously, approaching the silver-haired man that had been yelling at his younger field agent not so long before. "Special Agent Gibbs?"

Tony looked over to the woman who had just addressed his boss in such a scared and timid fashion. She was around five feet seven inches tall, with straight blonde hair that reached her shoulders and grey-green eyes. She wore a white shirt with a pair of grey suit trousers – her blazer was nowhere to be seen on her person, although Tony suspected that it was shoved into her bag – and a pair of grey flats.

Gibbs looked over at the woman. "Yes?"

The woman held out her hand for him to shake. "I am Special Agent Egle McCoy. The director requested me to come to you."

"Yeah, well, we're on a case right now…" Gibbs tried to explain.

"I know," Egle interrupted, ignoring the glare she received from the older man. "Which is why I've been assigned to this team until further notice."

Gibbs frowned. "Further notice?"

"Yes, Special Agent Gibbs – further notice."

All four of the agents in the bullpen looked up to the catwalk, where Director Vance stood. The director descended the stairs and entered the bullpen.

"Special Agent McCoy here is one of our top agents, Gibbs," Vance explained. "She will be replacing Mrs DiNozzo until she feels ready to return to work, which I feel won't be for a couple of months. Once she returns, Agent DiNozzo will be put on immediate maternity leave."

Tony pouted. "But I love seeing Ziva at work…"

"Tony, she's heavily pregnant. Let her go on maternity leave," McGee sighed.

Tony sighed. "Fine."

"Good." Vance nodded at all four of the agents. "Gentlemen. Ladies." He headed out of the bullpen. "Make her feel welcome, Gibbs!"

Gibbs, Tony and McGee just stared at Egle, making her uncomfortable until she had gained the confidence to speak up again.

"So, where is my desk?" she asked.

All three men pointed to the desk in the corner, where a desk was hidden behind a cardboard parter.

"Oh. Okay." Egle walked over to the desk and placed her rucksack at the desk, opening it and pulling out her blazer, her notebook and a pencil and pen. She pulled the blazer on, smoothing out the creases with her hands, before picking up her notebook, pen and pencil. "What have you got on this case so far, then?" she asked the team.

All three men ignored her.

"Anybody?" Egle asked. She sighed. She knew it would be too hard working with these stubborn men.

"We have nothing," McGee finally admitted.

Egle bit her lip. "Okay. Do you mind updating me on the case, please?" she asked, making sure to be polite.

Tony looked up at Egle. "McGee, you do it."

McGee nodded. "At around 1pm three days ago, an NCIS agent was kidnapped at her home."

"Who was this agent?" Egle asked curiously.

McGee spared a look at Tony before answering her question. "Special Agent Ziva DiNozzo."

Egle nodded. "Alright. Do you have anything else?"

McGee shook his head. "That's the thing. All security footage was cut off ten minutes before and restarted ten minutes after. The only evidence that we have to suggest we have a link to the kidnappers is the fact that at around the same time, both her husband and her sister were attacked."

"We think it has a link to her father," Tony added.

Egle nodded. "Were any of the neighbours awake or around at the time of the kidnapping?"

McGee shrugged. "We haven't had the opportunity to visit the crime scene yet. It's been blocked off, but the FBI's taking the case by force."

Egle frowned. "But this is one of our agents!"

"I know." McGee sighed. "But there's nothing we can do. Anything we use can go against us."

"Like the fact that she is related to Special Agent DiNozzo?" Egle asked. "I am guessing she is his wife. She is pregnant, which makes him all the more worried."

Tony's eyes widened. "How did you…"

"You reacted a little when McGee mentioned 'husband', and you seem very tense about this case. Also, she has the same surname as you, and earlier on you said that you 'loved seeing her at work'. That meant that she was in a personal relationship with you, like marriage."

Tony just stared at her.

"Are you a profiler, by chance?" McGee asked.

Egle nodded. "Yes, I am." She put her pencil to her lip thoughtfully. "If I was able to get to the crime scene, I may be able to get a sketch from interviewing some of the neighbours. Also, I could get a profile by seeing any footprints left on the scene, so I could see how tall or short these men were."

"Why assume it's a man?" McGee asked.

"There's more of a chance the kidnapper's a man than it is a woman."

"That makes sense," Tony muttered. "It was a man who came after us too, and I'm guessing it was men who came after Maria."

Egle nodded. "So, may I get a lift to the crime scene?"

Tony and McGee looked at each other before looking over at Gibbs. Gibbs sighed.

"DiNozzo, take Agent McCoy down to the crime scene," he ordered.

"Yes boss," Tony answered as he grabbed his rucksack and holstered his gun before grabbing his badge and stuffing it into his pocket. Egle did the same with her stuff, this time wearing her blazer rather than having it stuffed in her bag. She quickly followed Tony into the elevator, getting in just before it shut. Tony smirked.

"You've gotta be faster if you want to survive, McCoy," he teased.

Egle rolled her eyes at him. "I will be faster next time, then, if that makes you happy, Agent DiNozzo."

Tony smiled. "It's for your own good, McCoy."

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	36. Help for the Case

**Here's your next chapter, readers! I hope you enjoy it!**

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><p>Tony pulled up in front of the house which he had lived in for the past five years of his life. Just seeing the police tape in front of it made him cringe. It didn't look right to him. It was meant to look safe – the one place he could escape from all of the criminals and just be himself, with his children, his wife and (as much as he hated to admit it) his sister-in-law. And now that one safe place was ruined.<p>

Eglé realized why he was staring at the house and put a gentle hand on his shoulder. "So, this is where you live?"

Tony sighed. "Yup."

Eglé smiled. "Who do you live with?"

Tony smiled slightly. "My wife, and my three-soon-to-be-four kids, as well as my sister-in-law."

"That is very sweet," Eglé commented.

Tony looked over at Eglé. "Do you have a family?" he asked.

Eglé nodded. "I have two daughters who live with my husband in England."

Tony's eyes widened in shock. "England? Isn't that far?"

Eglé shrugged. "I got a job offer at NCIS whilst I was working in liason with NYPD two years ago. My husband couldn't leave his teaching job in the UK, and I really wanted this job here in the US. So we decided that he would take care of the children and I would come home on the holidays. It's quite hard sometimes, but it works out."

"Do you keep in contact with the kids?" Tony asked curiously.

Eglé nodded. "I Skype and Facebook my family every night."

"Wow…" Tony looked over at Eglé once more. "Do you miss them?"

Eglé smiled sadly. "Yes, I really do." She fingered something around her neck, and Tony noticed that it was a necklace made of beads. He smiled.

"That's sweet." He pointed at the necklace on her neck.

Eglé nodded and took a deep breath. "Well, that's enough about my hectic life." She opened the car door. "Come on – we have a case to solve before the FBI can get their hands on it."

Tony nodded and opened his door as well, following her cue as she walked up to one of the neighbours' houses. She knocked on the door.

Not long afterwards, the door was opened to reveal an elderly woman, _probably in her late fifties or early sixties_ Eglé guessed, standing at the door in an apron, her curly grey hair up in a tight bun and her hands inside a pair of rubber gloves. She smiled sweetly at Eglé.

"Hello, my dear." She pulled the gloves off her hands. "How can I help you?"

Eglé pulled out her badge and showed it to the woman. "Hello, I'm Special Agent Eglé McCoy, and this is Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo." She paused when she noticed recognition flash in the woman's eyes at Tony's name. "We realize that there has been a recent kidnapping in the neighbourhood, and we would like to ask you some questions about it."

The old woman's eyes widened. "I… I heard about what happened when the police told me…" She hesitated when her eyes landed on Tony and moved aside. "Come in, please."

* * *

><p>Maria sighed as she scrolled through her contacts again. There was no one she could call that was on her list, apart from her parents, but they had adamantly decided not to pick up when she needed them the most. She sighed. She hoped she could find someone to call, and soon. Suddenly, she had an idea. She scrolled for a number, and quickly punched it in, holding the phone to her ear as she waited.<p>

"_Hello?_"

"Katie? Thank god!"

Katie may not have been the brightest out of the group, but she was good with computers. And a really good hacker. If she had just that little bit more experience, she could rival McGee…

"_What is it, Maria? You haven't spoken to me for, like, two days! What's wrong?_" Katie's voice came down the line like a hurricane.

Maria held the phone away from her ears until she stopped ranting before bringing it back. "Yeah, yeah, we'll speak later. Look, I need a favour from you."

"_A favour?_" Maria could literally hear Katie frowning at the other end. "_What's going on, Maria? First you call me after two days of no contact, and now you're asking for favours?_"

"I said I'd tell you later, Katie," Maria sighed.

"… _Fine. What do you need?_"

"I need all the records you can find of the name _David_ from within the last two months."

"_What? Why?_"

"Just do it, Katie."

She could hear Katie turning on her laptop in the background and keys being typed. "_Okay, so what exactly am I looking for?_"

Maria shrugged. "Just anything. Credit card details, phone calls, airport flights – anything!"

"_Got it._" There was a tapping in the background. "_Okay, there's the airport flight the week before your nephew's birthday… some account withdrawals… hey, hold on…_" There was some more tapping in the background. "_I found some phone call recordings and transcripts made within the last three weeks. They all seem to be from your mom or dad._"

Maria smiled. She had something. "Send them to me."

"_Sure._" There was some more clicking and tapping in the background, and Maria waited patiently for Katie to finish. "_All done._"

Maria smiled and grabbed her laptop, opening it up and turning it on before opening up her emails. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Katie' email and opened it up. "Thanks, Katie."

"_No problem, Ria._"

Maria hung up with a smile as she read the email. She opened up the attachment with curiousity and read it, soaking in every line. She froze halfway through the second conversation. _Why was someone recording her parents' conversations?_ No, she needed a more important answer:

_Why were her parents having these conversations?_

* * *

><p>McGee picked up his desk phone. "Special Agent McGee's desk, how can I help you?"<p>

"_McGee? It's Maria._"

McGee frowned. "Maria? What's going on?"

"_Check your mail. It contains some important information that is gonna be important to your case. Read it._"

McGee tapped a few keys and opened up his emails, clicking on the one that Maria had sent him. "Are you sure this'll help us?" he asked as he opened up the email's attachment.

"_Yup._"

McGee sighed as he scanned through the document, slowly taking everything in. By the time he had finished, his eyes were wide with shock.

This was important to the case, alright. If they were to get Ziva back, that is.

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	37. Footage, Transcripts and Waiting

**It's been such a long time... but I have your next chapter! Hope you enjoy it!**

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><p>Eglé sighed as they headed to the front door. "Thank you again, Mrs Mante, for your input."<p>

Daisy smiled as she picked up the baby boy and slowly rocked him to sleep in her arms. "No problem, Agent McCoy." She looked up at the agent. "I'm always happy to help a fellow agent, even if they're from a different agency."

Eglé smiled. "That is very kind of you." She walked out of the front door and over to the car, where Tony stood by a laptop that he had set on the roof and talking into his cell phone to McGee. "Anything yet?" she asked.

Tony shook his head as he typed various things into the laptop. "Nope. McGee can't get a hold of the security footage." He looked up. "I'm sure that isn't the only security camera here, though…"

Eglé's eyes widened in realization and she looked around. "You must be correct, Agent DiNozzo – look!" She pointed up at a security camera that was hanging off one of the neighbour's houses.

Tony smiled. "That's Daisy and Jude's camera – they aren't sure of the neighbourhood."

"But that is the main camera," Eglé pointed out, turning to point at the camera that was on the street lamp. "That must have been the one that was disconnected, as that is the only one connected to main security feeds. That one," she turned to point at Daisy and Jude's, "must be connected to a private feed."

Tony raised an eyebrow at her. "And you want us to hack into their feeds?" he asked.

"Or we could just ask," Eglé suggested. She headed up to the front door of the Mante residence. "You coming?"

Tony nodded and swiftly followed Eglé, making sure everything was secured in the car before doing so.

* * *

><p>"McGee! What'cha got?"<p>

McGee typed something into his computer. "Something really interesting, boss. You know how Maria said that she couldn't get in contact with her parents?"

Gibbs just waited for McGee to continue.

"Well, look at what she found." McGee pressed a few keys and something came up on the screen. Gibbs frowned as he attempted to read it.

"Is that…"

"Boss, it's a transcript of every phone conversation they've had since they arrived in the States." McGee turned to Gibbs. "Someone's bugged them, boss."

"Bugged who?" Tony and Eglé walked into the bullpen holding a couple of CDs in their hands.

McGee pointed at the flat screen TV. "This is what Maria managed to find."

Tony frowned. "Maria found this?" He read the first few lines. "A transcript… you would've needed to do some hacking to find this."

"And?" Eglé asked, placing the CDs on McGee's desk.

"Maria doesn't hack." Tony turned to McGee. "Go through her phone records. I have a feeling I know who it was."

McGee frowned. "You mean you think it was Katie?"

"She hasn't got extensive military knowledge, but she's good with computers." Tony's eyes narrowed. "How did she find this?"

"I don't know." McGee picked up one of the CDs. "What are on these?"

"Security footage," Eglé explained. "I was hoping you could identify the people that took Ziva from this. It's taken from the camera just outside Mr and Mrs Mante's house."

"Mante?" McGee popped one of the CDs into his computer. "They have a security camera?"

Tony nodded. "Turns out they want to be extra careful with the neighbourhood – I didn't think it'd come in handy."

McGee nodded and watched as the videos from the CD loaded up onto the computer. It took quite a while, but eventually the videos loaded up. McGee played them through, and frowned when he noticed the black car that pulled up in front of the DiNozzo residence about forty-five minutes after Tony left with the kids. "I think that's the car…"

Two men stepped out of the car – one taller and skinnier than the other – and headed for the DiNozzo front door. Tony just noticed the guns that they holstered as they neared the door. All four agents frowned when they noticed how civilized the men were, as they knocked at the front door.

"That is strange…" Eglé noted before Ziva opened the door. The door was then immediately shut, but the men managed to stop it before it was closed with their boots. Not long after, they entered the house with their guns out.

Tony held his breath. He knew Ziva wouldn't hold out against the men, but he hadn't seen what had happened. About fifteen minutes later, the men emerged from the house with an unconscious Ziva in their arms. They climbed into their car and sped off. About two minutes later, another car arrived at the scene. Gibbs climbed out of the car and shut the door, looking around to make sure he was safe, before unholstering his gun and heading straight for the DiNozzo residence.

McGee stopped the video. "Boss…"

Eglé cut him off. "McGee, rewind and zoom in on the men's faces."

McGee looked to Gibbs for permission, who nodded. He rewound the video and zoomed in on the men's faces. Eglé frowned.

"I may be able to draw them…"

"Or we could get images of these and send them down to the lab for ID," McGee pointed out.

"They won't be on AFIS," Tony pointed out.

"Why not?"

"They aren't American criminals. They speak Italian, and they know Director David. I'm gonna assume that they're some sort of terrorist group from Italy, and they want revenge on the Director for something Mossad did."

"They probably foiled one of their plans," Eglé suggested. "Or they could've skipped out on a deal…"

McGee's eyes brightened. "Skipped out on a deal…" He opened up the transcripts again and scrolled through them for something to do with deals. "Here, read this."

Tony and Eglé looked at the screen and read through the section of transcript. Tony paled.

"Someone's after him again?" he muttered.

"And they actually threatened to take his family if they didn't get him…" Eglé added. Her hands clenched in fury. "He put his family in danger like this!"

"He's an unreliable father-in-law," Tony growled. "I'd expect something like this from him.

"And I'm betting he has security all around him," McGee muttered. "Stupid lowlife."

"How can we find him?" Eglé asked, turning to Gibbs.

Gibbs just sipped his coffee. "We don't."

"We don't?" Tony and McGee asked simultaneously.

"Nope." Gibbs stood up to head out for coffee. "We wait for him to come to us."

* * *

><p>Ziva shivered in the cold, dark cell. She was exhausted. She'd been threatened, and occasionally beaten, for the information on her father that those men believed her to have – the exact information that she <em>didn't<em> have. She rested her head against the cold wall.

It had been about three to four days since she had been kidnapped now – she wasn't exactly sure now, being pregnant and tired and all – and she had gotten nowhere in finding out why they needed her father. Absolutely nowhere. And she had a strange feeling that she could go into labour at any second, and these men wouldn't even care.

She got up and started banging on the door. "Hello?" She knew it was useless, but she did it anyway. "Hello? I am hungry! Could you please bring me some food?" She completely expected them to ignore her, but it had been worth a shot.

She was genuinely shocked when a man walked into the room not long after, carrying a plate of bread, cheese and water. He placed the plate in front of her. "Eat."

Ziva inched towards the food slowly. "Thank you," she whispered.

"In exchange for information about your father."

Ziva frowned. "I do not know where he is. I have already told you that."

"And your sister?"

Ziva paused before shrugging. "I don't know about her."

The man nodded. "My master says to keep you in here until your father comes." He left the room.

"Wait! No!" Ziva called out. But it was too late. The door had already shut. She huddled into the corner and huddled into as tight a ball as she could without her stomach getting into the way.

She just wanted to go home.

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	38. Parents' Arrival and No Mercy

**Hey, guys! Here's your next chapter! I hope you like it! Enjoy!**

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><p>When Maria had finally gotten a hold of her parents, it took all of her strength not to attack them there and then. She ground her teeth and clenched her fists as she glared at the two adults standing in front of the door to the hotel room she had been staying in. "It's you."<p>

Rosalina rolled her eyes. "Of course we are, Maria." She took a step towards her daughter. "You wanted us here, no?"

Maria just glared. "Yeah. A _whole freaking week ago!_"

Rosalina stepped back in shock. "Maria…"

Maria just ignored her and turned to her father. "Where were you?"

"Excuse me?" Eli asked.

"Where. Were. You?" Maria asked slowly.

Eli glared at her. That is none of your business, Maria."

"Where were you when Ziva was kidnapped?" Maria demanded, her voice rising to a shout.

"What?" Eli asked.

"Where were you when she was taken from her own home a week ago? Where were you when I found out that you were linked in with this?" She was fuming now. "Where were you when I found out that you were the sole reason for this, which made me call you over and over again only to come up with no answer? Where, Eli?"

Eli stared in shock at his daughter. She had never spoken to him using his first name before – only _dad_ or _daddy_. That's when realization finally hit him. His little girl was growing up… like Ziva…

"Where were you, Eli?" Maria demanded again.

Eli sighed. "Your mother and I, we were in a safe-house."

"In a safe house? A goddamn safe house?" Maria had to mentally remind herself not to strangle him. "You put your whole family in danger, and you stayed _in a safe house_?"

"Maria, our lives are important—"

"But obviously not as important as your grandchildren," she spat. She grabbed both of her parents' arms and dragged them into her hotel room, shoving them onto the couch. "I nearly missed my exam because I had to be under protective custody! You're lucky Tony let me go, because if I'd missed it, the three moths I spent studying for this would have gone down the drain, and I would've hunted you down with a knife rather than a telephone."

Rosalina gulped. She had never seen her daughter like this. "Ri-ri…"

"Don't you 'Ri-ri' me!" She glared at her mother. "I'm not your little 'Ri-ri' anymore!" She took a deep breath. "We need your help at NCIS."

Eli raised an eyebrow. "You are looking for her?"

Maria nodded. "And you have to help, because you started this." She grabbed her coat. "Come on. I'll get one of the agents to give us a lift back to base."

Rosalina and Eli followed her, stunned. Their daughter had never treated them like that.

* * *

><p>"Maria! What are you—" Tony stopped mid-sentence when he noticed who was following her and growled. "What on earth are they doing here?"<p>

McGee looked up and glared just as Gibbs walked in from the other side of the bullpen. The three male agents stood up and crossed their arms in an intimidating fashion. Eglé just stood back and watched, interested in what would happen.

"Well, well, well. Look who finally decided to turn up," Gibbs said, glaring at the Mossad director.

Eli rolled his eyes at Gibbs. "I have been busy."

"Not busy enough," Maria butted in. "Should we get them into interrogation?"

Tony nodded. "I'll take them down there with you."

"No." Eglé stepped forwards. "We want to guarantee that these people will be alive when we start interrogating them. Agent McGee and I will do it."

Gibbs nodded. "Go on, get them there – I'll be waiting."

"As will I," Tony growled as he watched the agents lead them down to interrogation.

* * *

><p>He walked down the dark corridors. Why he had chosen a hideout that was partially underground was beyond him. The dank smell, the damp walls… it wasn't healthy for any of the workers here. It would've been better above ground. They would never have found them anyway – they were too good at what they did. Yes… that flunk a decade ago was just a simple flaw. It didn't matter anymore. They would get their revenge.<p>

He approached the solid metal door and knocked.

"Come in."

He walked into the room.

It was an average sized room – for an office, anyway. The walls were a plain grey, matching the cold concrete flooring and the cold metal desk that stood at the far end of the room, in front of the metal swivel chair… where a man currently sat.

"Boss?" the man who walked in asked. "You called?"

'Boss' was a firmly built Mediterranean man – many of the workers believed he was from Spain or Portugal, which caused him to laugh, as he was actually from Italy. He had dark hair that curled at his ears, and a firm jaw shape with dark eyes and firm lips. Many would in fact think he was quite handsome. The only thing that marred his appearance was the long scar that ran the full length of the right hand side of his face. He wore a dark suit, and a silver ring was on his finger. _A snake…_

"Yes," 'Boss' answered in a thick Italian accent. "Have you found anything else?"

"No, Boss," the man answered. "She refuses to tell us any details – claims that she has no idea of their whereabouts."

'Boss' nodded, placing his elbows on the desk and steeping his fingers in front of his mouth as he leaned forward. "Then start it."

The man's eyes widened. "But, Boss, she's pregnant!"

'Boss' glared. "I do not care. She is the daughter of Eli David. I shall get my revenge. I could not have the other child, so I shall have this one." He spared one more glance at the man. "Do it."

The man nodded. "Yes sir." He turned to leave the room.

"Oh, and Fredrick?"

'Fredrick' turned back around. "Yes, Boss?"

'Boss' smiled evilly. "Show her no mercy."

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	39. The Past of Maria David

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><p>"Spill."<p>

Eli raised an eyebrow at the agent that was standing before him. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me." Eglé leaned forwards onto the table. "I need every little detail."

Eli chuckled. "You must be new to interrogation."

Eglé glared at him. "Tell me. Now."

Eli rolled his eyes at her. "I do not _need_ to tell you about my past."

"Yes you do."

"No I do not. You would like me to, but you do not _need_ me to."

Suddenly, the door to the interrogation room burst open and slammed against the wall. "_What is this about __**needing**__?_"

Eli and Eglé looked over to see Maria standing at the door, a furious glare on her face.

Eli just rolled his eyes. "You do not _need_ my help to get what you want. So I do not need to be here." He stood up to leave.

"_Sit_," Maria commanded, walking into the room. She slammed the door behind her and took Eglé's place in front of Eli.

Eli sighed and sat down. "Fine. What do you want?"

"Tell me everything," Maria commanded. "Why are these men chasing you? Who are they?" She leaned closer to him. "What has this got to do with the rest of us?" she growled.

Eli sighed and took a deep breath. "I should have told you this earlier, Maria."

"Told me what?" Maria asked, confused. She turned to the mirror, which she suspected Gibbs was standing behind. She knew he would stand there to keep an eye on her – she'd literally begged to interrogate her father herself, so he probably wouldn't trust her without knowing she'd attack him.

Eli sighed. "The story of your… birth…"

Maria raised an eyebrow. "Say _what_ now?"

Eli sighed. "If you must know about these men, then you must know about your past." He pointed at the chair in front of him. "Get comfortable – this may be a while."

Maria nodded and sat down. "Okay, I'm settled. Tell me everything."

Eli looked straight at his daughter. "When your mother and I met and fell in love, her parents forbade me from seeing her, especially as they found out my former wife – Ziva's mother, Rivka – had left me and taken her children with her a year before. Of course, your mother persuaded me to go against her family's wishes, and I managed to marry her in secrecy. We were happy, until you were born…"

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><p>"<em>Eli! Eli!"<em>

_Eli ran down the corridors. He couldn't be late this time. He had to get there quickly…_

_And then came the cry._

_He sighed and paused in front of the door, deciding to walk in instead. It had been two weeks since his daughter, his new youngest, had been born, and she had not stopped crying since they had returned to his safe house. Of course, whenever his wife called his name, he thought it would be something more than just another call to change the baby, or feed her, or quiet her._

_When he walked into the room, he immediately spotted his wife sitting up on the bed, holding a crying baby in her arms. She looked up at him tiredly._

"_Could you take her for a while?" she asked, handing him the baby._

_Eli nodded. He had no choice but to take her. "Yes, my darling wife." He kissed Rosalina on the forehead. "You get some rest. I will look after the baby."_

_Rosalina smiled and lay back down on the bed. "Thank you, Eli."_

_He smiled back before walking out of the room, a crying baby in his arms. As soon as the door was closed behind him, the crying ceased. A pair of dark eyes stared up at him, matching the dark hair she had and the naturally tanned Mediterranean skin she had inherited from her mother. Eli smiled at his daughter._

"_Maria," he muttered, smiling at the little girl. "Do you like that?"_

_The little girl gurgled happily, reaching up to touch her father's nose._

_Eli smiled and brought down his finger for her to wrap hers around, and he grinned when she gripped his finger. "It seems as if you do, little one."_

_The little girl continued to gurgle happily, and Eli just smiled at her. He was getting another chance at a family…_

* * *

><p>"What do you mean until I was born?" Maria demanded. "You seemed pretty happy!"<p>

Eli sighed. "When you were born, we were indeed very happy, but it was hard to keep quiet. Eventually, our hideout was given away by someone – we do not know who – and we had to get away…"

* * *

><p>"<em>Quick, Rosalina!"<em>

_She quickly stuffed some items into a bag. "I am hurrying, Eli!"_

_Baby Maria, now six months old, sat on the bed, bawling her eyes out. Her little pink outfit with white tights and pink shoes seemed to be ruined by her red face and tear stained cheeks._

_Eli ran into the room, grabbing the little girl and attempting to hush her with her small toy rabbit. "Rosalina…"_

_Rosalina quickly closed the bag. "Alright, alright!" She picked up the bag. "Let's go."_

_Eli nodded and grabbed the bag that was set aside for Maria before racing out of the door, making sure his wife was close behind him. He nodded as he passed one of his Mossad agents, making sure that the agent knew he was leaving._

_Rosalina ran to catch up with him. "Eli…"_

"_Your family has found us, Rosa," Eli explained. "And they have sent their gang after us."_

_Rosalina frowned. "Do you not mean after you?"_

_Eli shook his head. "They are angry with you for disobeying them, Rosalina. They want the child, and they want to kill me."_

_Rosalina sighed. "So you want me to take the child and run?"_

_Eli nodded. "Away from here. I want you both to be safe." He opened a door leading them into a garage. "Get into a car." He handed her a set of keys. "Drive."_

_Rosalina nodded and kissed Eli. "I will miss you."_

_Eli smiled. "I will miss you too..."_

* * *

><p>Maria stared at him. "You… you let her go alone?"<p>

"They were coming after me, Maria."

"But what does this have to do with Ziva?" Eglé asked. "What does this have to do with our case?"

"These men… they swore to get revenge on me for what I did," Eli explained. "They are relatives of your mother, Maria, and they are angry for what I did. They hate me, they hate you, they want to hurt us by hurting the closest thing to both of us."

"And the closest thing to us is…" Maria's eyes widened. "Ziva."

"Yes."

Maria closed her eyes. "I've been living with her for the last few years. They must've been keeping tabs on me…"

"And they know of my family… my past."

"And Ziva's the only one left."

Eli's head shot up. "What?"

"I know about Rivka – she wasn't hard to find out about. Ziva told me about Tali once – that's who she named little Tali after. And I met Ari. They're all dead. That leaves Ziva – the only one who's connecting us at this moment."

Eli nodded.

"Right. Help us."

"Find Ziva?"

"Yes."

Eli nodded. "What do you want me to do?"

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	40. Jobs, Still Searching and Visiting Kids

**Hey, re****aders! Here's your next chapter! I hope you like it!**

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><p>"Please! Stop!"<p>

Fredrick laughed at her before slapping her across the face. "Shut up, woman."

Ziva's lower lip wobbled. "Please… I have done nothing to hurt you…"

"You may have not, but your father…" he slapped her again. "He has done a lot to anger us."

Ziva glared at him. "What has he done? What did he ever do to you to make you hate me?"

Fredrick laughed. "Oh, he has done a lot to anger us…" He grabbed a stick and poked her huge stomach. "I wonder what he would do if he lost a grandchild…"

Ziva's eyes widened. "No…" She attempted to kick out at him. "Don't touch my baby!"

"Why not? Is your precious little family coming to save you?" Fredrick smirked. "If they were, would they not be here by now?"

"Shut up!" Ziva attempted to hide the pain. She knew he was right, but he was trying to break her. Slowly.

"Since you are still here, maybe we should get you to do some work for us…"

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><p>"So do you have any idea where they would be?"<p>

Eli sighed. "For the hundredth time, Maria, no."

Maria sighed. "McGee! Anything?"

McGee sighed. "Maria, I can barely get through these firewalls." He frowned. "How did Katie manage to find this website?"

"Because she's Katie."

Tony yelled out frustration as he closed his desk before rubbing his face tiredly with his hands. "Oh god, Ziva…" He looked up. "McGee, trace the calls."

"That's what I'm doing, Tony, but wherever Katie found these has thousands of firewalls to break through."

Tony put his head back in his hands. "I need to do something… anything…"

Rosalina sat on the edge of his desk and started rubbing his back reassuringly. "Do not worry, Anthony – we will find her."

Tony nodded. "I know, I just… I need to get out of the office and do something productive for this case…"

"Go and see the kids," Maria suggested. "They really miss you."

"I… I don't think I can face them…"

"You won't know until you try," McGee pointed out. "If I was in your position, I'd go to see little Sarah all the time."

Tony nodded as he stood up and grabbed his coat and bag. "I'll see you all later."

McGee smiled. "Good luck, Tony."

Tony smiled at him. "Thanks."

* * *

><p>"DADDY!"<p>

Tony chuckled as his three children came running up to him and hugged them tightly, holding them close. "Hey, kiddies."

TJ kissed her father's cheek. "We missed you, daddy!"

Tony nodded. "I know, kiddo. I know."

AJ looked up at him. "Daddy, I make picture!"

"Really?" Tony asked, suddenly interested. "You think you can show me?"

AJ nodded and ran off the fetch his picture. "Anty Muki! Where my picture?"

Mukta smiled. "It's on the fridge, AJ. Do you want me to get it for you?"

AJ nodded. "Yes pwease! Daddy wanna see it!"

Mukta nodded before going to the kitchen to fetch it.

"Aawon! Aawon! Where my cwayons?" AJ called out.

Aaron, Mukta's son, slowly descended the stairs. "You leave them in bafwoom."

Tony frowned. "Why are they in the bathroom, buddy?"

"AJ said he wanted to do colouring whilst he had a bath," Kate explained. "I told him not to, but he still did it."

"There's nothing wrong with colouring in the bath!" TJ defended her brother. "I used to do it!"

"So?" Kate asked.

"Hey, hey! Don't fight!" Tony warned. "I didn't come here to watch you fight."

"Sorry, daddy," the twins answered.

Tony nodded. "Thank you." He kissed both their foreheads. "You kids had dinner yet?"

"Yup!" TJ answered.

"We had rice and chicken curry," Kate explained. "And then Auntie Mukta gave us grapes and strawberries for dessert!"

"Mmm," Tony grinned. "That sounds lovely."

"It was, daddy!" TJ agreed.

Tony smiled at them both. "I'm glad you lot ate well."

Kate smiled before it faded a little. "Daddy, where's momma?"

Tony's smile disappeared. "Momma… momma's been taken away for a little while."

"Did some bad men take her away?" TJ asked curiously.

Tony nodded. "Yeah."

"Are you trying to find her, daddy?" Kate asked. "Is that why you look so tired, daddy?"

Tony stared at his daughters for a little while before giving them a tired smile. "You're both very smart, you know that?"

TJ nodded. "Momma always told me that I was très intelligente! _**(very smart)**_"

"Really, principessa?" Tony asked. "Well, she sure was right."

"Are you gonna find her, daddy?" Kate asked.

Tony nodded. "Of course we are, Kate. It'll take us a little while, but we'll find her, okay?"

The twins nodded.

"Good." He kissed each of their foreheads again. "Now, where's your brother with that drawing?"

AJ ran into the room. "Daddy! Daddy! Look! Picture!" He handed Tony the drawing he had made. "It a picture!"

"What's it a picture of?" Tony asked.

"Well, there momma, and there you, and there Kate and Tali and me!" AJ said excitedly, pointing at each person in turn.

Tony smiled. "This is a very nice picture," he said, although the people looked more like blobs with stumps for arms and legs. He chuckled. "It's great! I'm gonna keep it with me every day!"

"Evewy day?" AJ gasped before a huge grin broke out on his face. "Yay!"

Tony chuckled. "Alright, alright. Hey, look at the time."

The three kids turned to the clock. Quarter to eight. They pouted. "No!"

Tony sighed. This had always been the hardest bit. "Right, when I count to ten, you all better be in your beds, understood?"

"But we don't wanna go to bed!" the twins exclaimed.

"It's way past your bedtime already, girls," Tony pointed out. "Now I'm gonna count to ten. And if you aren't in bed, daddy isn't gonna come and visit tomorrow."

The girls pouted. "But daddy!"

"1… 2… 3…"

The girls continued to pout, hoping that Tony would just cave in.

"4… 5… 6… 7…"

Their eyes widened. He wasn't giving up.

"8…"

The girls ran upstairs and into the room they shared. "Goodnight, daddy!"

Tony chuckled and stood up. "Goodnight, girls!" He picked AJ up. "Come on, let's get you ready for bed."

AJ pouted. "I don't wanna sleep, daddy…"

Tony sighed. "AJ…" He frowned when he felt his phone vibrating in his pocket. He pulled it out and checked the caller ID before flipping it open and answering. "DiNozzo."

"_We've got her._"

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	41. Going For Ziva and Meeting Walker

**Hello, my readers! I have your next chapter here for you... finally! :) I've been quite busy recently, but I hope I can get you your next chapter much quicker!**

**Enjoy it!  
><strong>

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><p>Tony ran into the office, breathing heavily from his sprint all the way up from the garage – he couldn't wait for the lift. "You've got her?"<p>

Maria nodded. "McGee?"

McGee looked up from his computer. "You know those transcripts Katie found?"

"Katie as in Maria's friend?"

"Yeah."

Tony nodded.

"We've managed to find where Katie found them, and trace them back to their source."

A map came up on the screen showing an abandoned warehouse not too far from civilization. The warehouse seemed to be just on the outskirts of Washington, not far from an intersection that Tony felt like he should know well.

Maria pointed at the screen. "That warehouse seems to be the headquarters of the _Columbo_ gang, my mother's family."

Tony perked up slightly. "Is that where Ziva's being held?"

Maria shrugged. "Maybe. You're going to send a couple of agents undercover to check on the area."

He nodded, although he had trouble hiding his smile. "If we've found her…"

Maria smiled. "Then this is all over."

Tony gave a huge sigh of relief before frowning. "Can you get security footage from the cameras outside the building?"

McGee's eyes widened slightly before he smiled. "We can!" He quickly typed into his computer and started working on it. A few minutes later, he had managed to hack into the security feeds outside the building. "What day was Ziva kidnapped on?"

"Go back one week," Tony said.

He, Eglé and Maria watched as McGee rewound the video back to the week before.

Eglé's eyes widened when she spotted something. "Stop the video."

McGee did as he was told. "What? What did you see?"

Eglé pointed to something on the screen. "That car… run the plates against everything we've found so far and put out a B.O.L.O. on the car. I'm sure I have seen it before."

"Photographic memory?" Tony asked her.

Eglé shrugged. "Maybe I do, maybe I don't. I just have a feeling that it's the car we're looking for."

Maria nodded. "Think you can play a little more of that video, McGee? I think there's more to this…"

McGee nodded and played the video a little further. Maria gasped. "Oh my goodness…"

The video showed two men climbing out of the car, one big and one fairly small, both with a Mediterranean tan and each one wearing dark leather outfits with sunglasses. The men seemed to be walking away before they walked to the trunk of the car and opened it. Everyone gasped when they saw the men drag a person out of the trunk – a pregnant woman to be precise.

"Ziva!" Maria cried.

Tony's face was set into a deep frown. "They've got her." He walked over to his desk and got out his gun and badge.

"DiNozzo, what are you doing?" Gibbs demanded.

"I'm going to get my wife," Tony stated as he started to head out of the bullpen.

Eglé stood in his way. "Tony, you can't."

Tony glared at her. "Why not?"

"Because you need backup." She gave him a smile. "Just wait for me to get my stuff."

"And someone get me a gun," Maria added, smiling as well. "Those guys kidnapped my sister. I want revenge."

McGee smiled and got out his gun and badge. "I'm coming too!"

Everyone turned to Gibbs, who sighed.

"Grab your gear! We've got an agent to retrieve!"

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><p>"Move!"<p>

Ziva cried out in pain was pushed again down the corridor, carrying the heavy weight. The men here had wanted to rebuild a part of the old warehouse, due to it collapsing at some point or other, and they had decided to get Ziva to help them fix it up. By carrying heavy bricks. "I… I can't…"

"Move!" Fredrick pushed her again. "We need to get this done now!"

Ziva had just taken a step forward when she felt a pain in her abdomen. She stopped again and cried out.

One of the nearby workers watched with a frown. "Boss, don't you think she should stop?"

Fredrick turned to him. "And why do you think that, Walker?"

Walker seemed to cower a little. "She… she s-seems to be going into l-l-labour, sir," he stammered. "I th-th-thought that you would… maybe… go easy on her?"

Fredrick stared at the worker before laughing loudly. "'_Go easy on her'_? You must be kidding, Walker!" He pushed Ziva, who tripped and fell with a wince. "That woman is dirty filth. I wouldn't care if she gave birth right here, she is going to work!" He grabbed Ziva by the scruff of her neck and slapped her across the face, adding to the many bruises already littered there.

Ziva breathed heavily as she glared at Fredrick before spitting in his face. "לך לעזאזל _**(Go to hell)**_," she spat in Hebrew.

Fredrick frowned before glaring at her. "Israeliano! _**(Israeli!)**_" He slapped her. "Pick up the brick and move, filthy woman!"

Ziva glared at him before crying out in pain at another contraction. "I… I cannot…"

Fredrick glared at her before dropping her and leaving her there. "Make sure you get it there within the next ten minutes," he threatened before walking off.

Ziva just continued to bear through the contraction, glancing at the bricks that lay scattered on the ground. She couldn't do the rest of the way… she just couldn't…

Walker watched her sitting on the floor, pitying the woman. She looked so pained, and bruises littered her cheeks and what he could see of her arms. She had scratches on her arms as well as tangled hair, and from the dirtiness of her clothes he could tell that she hadn't changed clothes for the entire time she'd been there. He bent down next to her. "Excuse me, ma'am?"

Ziva looked up at him. "Y-y-yes?"

"Do you need any help with that?" he asked, pointing to the pile of bricks.

Ziva looked over at the pile and then back to him. "Do you not think you would get into trouble?"

Walker shrugged. "If it's to help another person, I don't mind." He sighed. "I'm here against my will, anyway."

Ziva looked at him, some pity in her eyes. "But you look like all the other men here…"

Walker laughed. "I'm just related to them. I didn't want to be a part of their stupid gang – my father and uncle forced me into it."

It was then that Ziva noticed the slight accent – Italian, probably? She smiled at him. "I know how it feels to be forced into something…"

Walker nodded. "Here," he picked up the bricks. "I'll take them for you. You can just follow me."

Ziva nodded. "Thank you… Walker."

Walker smiled. "No problem. What's your name?"

"Ziva DiNozzo, previously Ziva David."

"David?" Walker frowned. "That's a hated name here. I see why you've been kidnapped."

Ziva nodded as she stood up slowly. "But I know my family will come for me eventually. They are strong in that way."

Walker nodded uncertainly. "Sure…" _This compound is impossible to get into. There's no way her family can get into here…_

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><p><strong>Oooh, cliff hanger... Review!<strong>_  
><em>


	42. Breaking In and Alarms

**Hey, readers! Here's your next chapter! I hope you like it! Read on!**

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><p>Tony frowned as he loaded a fresh magazine into his gun. He'd just taken out three men, one of which had been very uncooperative and had been determined not to die with just one bullet. "Stupid guards."<p>

"_Don't lose it, DiNozzo,_" Gibbs' voice came through his earpiece. "_We need you for this break-in._"

Tony sighed and nodded. "Got it, boss." He turned and signaled over to Eglé, who tiptoed forward.

"Where to now?" she asked as she neared the wall where he stood.

"_Well, there should be a door to your left,_" McGee's voice came through their earpieces. "_Go through it and down the corridor. I'll guide you when you get inside._"

"Got it." Tony and Eglé crept along the wall before opening the door slowly. They looked down the corridor.

The corridor was dimly lit, with lights hanging every 50 metres or so down the hallway. The walls and floor were made of a solid grey concrete, making the area extremely cold due to the freezing February night. Doors appeared every 5 metres, each one a dull grey metal, and immediately to their right was a concrete staircase.

Tony crept into the corridor. It was empty – no guards stood in this corridor at this time – meaning that he and Eglé made it all the way down the corridor without being seen.

"_Okay, take the next door on the left._"

Tony opened the door carefully as Eglé held her gun out, ready to shoot any ambushes. They nodded at each other as they walked through. This was too easy…

The pair stopped and jumped into a shadow when they heard someone approaching, holding their breaths. They couldn't afford to be caught now. They had just gotten inside the compound, and they needed to find Ziva.

They couldn't afford to make a mistake.

Tony and Eglé watched as the guard walked past, frowning at the open door.

"Hey, Bill!"

"Yeah, Ben?"

"How many times have I told you to shut the goddamn door?" Ben slammed the door shut.

Bill came down the corridor, confused. "But… I didn't open the door!"

"Then who did?"

Bill shrugged. "I dunno."

Ben glared at him before whacking him upside the head. "Stop making stupid excuses!" He grabbed Bill by the scruff of his shirt before dragging him down the corridor.

Tony gave a sigh of relief. "We're safe," he whispered.

Eglé nodded and looked out of their hiding place. They had entered another corridor, this one slightly different to the one they had just left. This one had metal bars and pass codes in front of the doors on each side. She sighed. "McGee, do you know where we are?"

"_Uh… yeah. I've pinpointed your location. Now I'm just mapping out where you need to go next…_"

"McGee," Tony broke in, "if we need to go through one of these doors, you're gonna have to hack into the security system."

McGee paused on the other line. "_Oh… now I see… yeah, I'll get to that straight away, Tony. Just keep moving, and keep an eye out. I'll tell you which door to go through._"

Tony smiled. "Thanks, Tim."

"_No problem, Tony_."

Tony nodded to Eglé, and the pair headed down the corridor cautiously, the exact same way the two guards had gone, with their guns out, ready to shoot when needed. They stopped at the first door, waiting for McGee's signal before moving on.

Tony took a deep breath. _They had to find her soon…_

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><p>He yawned and watched the various screens lazily. Nothing would happen. Nothing happened here anyway. Why did he even have this job?<p>

This man was the security guard at the compound. The man was slightly on the large side, with the same Italian tan and dark hair as the rest of the men in the compound, and he spent most of his day watching the security cameras until he switched shifts with one of the other men. There was usually very little action, meaning he didn't do much.

So when he spotted two people, who definitely _weren't_ a part of the gang, sneaking down one of the corridors in the building, he didn't know what to do. He quickly picked up his radio and signaled for the nearest guard. "T-t-this is an emergency!"

About five minutes later, Fredrick burst into the room. "What is it, Georgio?"

The security guard looked up at him from the screen. "F-F-Fredrick, look." He pointed at the screen that showed the two agents sneaking across the corridor to one of the doors.

Fredrick frowned. "Is that…?" He squinted at the screen and smiled slyly.

The security guard frowned. "Fredrick…?"

Fredrick just put his hand on the security guard's shoulder. "When I tell you to, set off the alarm." He smirked. "Those agents won't know what hit them…"

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><p>"<em>Okay… just a couple more doors…<em>"

Eglé looked uncertain. "We are heading deeper and deeper into the compound, McGee. Is this not too dangerous?"

Tony nodded in agreement. "We have no escape route, McGee."

"_Well, I'm sorry, but this is the best way to enter the compound without getting caught. Now take the next door on your left._"

Eglé frowned. "Left goes further into the compound, doesn't it?"

"_Yeah, but that's the corridor that the cells are on. Ziva could be in one of them._"

Tony perked up. "Ziva?" He looked at the door they were meant to enter. "Is it unlocked?"

They heard a click. "_It is now._"

Tony and Eglé both smirked before Tony reached for the handle. Eglé nodded and stood back slightly, her gun poised at whoever might be standing on the other side.

Tony took a deep breath. _This is it…_ He opened the door.

And then the alarm went.

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><p><strong>Oooh... Review!<strong>


	43. Herioc Rescues, and a Turn of Events

**Hello, my fabulous readers! I have your next chapter for you, now! I hope you enjoy reading it, because this took me quite a while to write... XD**

**Enjoy it readers!**

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><p>Tony sprinted down the corridors, with Eglé not far behind. The two were now on the run from some of the stronger guards – the ones that had been placed oh-so-conveniently in the corridor that the cells were held on, guarding the only other exit – running through the corridors of the building.<p>

"_DiNozzo! DiNozzo!_"

"Yeah, boss?" Tony panted as he ran.

"_Where are you headed? You aren't heading in any direction!_"

He rounded a corner and pulled Eglé in, avoiding capture narrowly as the men ran on, unable to stop, and collided with another group and knocked themselves out. "Boss, we're on the run! Do you really expect us to get to Ziva?"

"Besides, she was not in the cell," Eglé added. "The cells were empty when we arrived. They must have known when we arrived."

Tony groaned. "Now how are we going to get to her? They've probably hidden her in some secret hide-out!" He punched the wall in frustration.

"Calm down, Tony," Eglé comforted him, placing her hand on his shoulder. "We'll find her eventually."

Tony put his forehead against the wall. "But when?" He could feel despair creeping up on him. If they couldn't find Ziva now… when they were so close… when would they find her?

The pair were so busy thinking that they didn't notice the man who walked around the corner until Eglé span and pointed her gun at his nose out of instinct. The man froze.

"Who are you? What do you want?" Eglé demanded.

"Uh…" the man stuttered.

"Answer or I'll blow your brains out!"

"M-m-my name's W-Walker! I… I was j-j-just walking around!" He held his hands up in surrender.

"Put the gun down, McCoy," Tony sighed. "He won't hurt us."

Eglé narrowed her eyes at him before putting the gun down slowly.

Tony turned to face the guy. "Besides, he knows the building inside out, right? He can help us get out of here."

Eglé frowned. "'Get out'?" She shook her head. "How are we going to get Ziva if we leave?"

Walker perked up. They were looking for…

"She's not here," Tony pointed out. "You saw her cell."

"Yes she is," Walker piped up.

Both agents turned to look at Walker and frowned, very confused. "She is?"

Walker nodded. "They're… they're working on getting her out of the building now, but they're keeping her in a safe place until they can. She hasn't left the building yet."

Tony perked up. "So… you can lead us to her?"

Walker nodded. "If my guess on the location is correct, then yeah, I can."

Tony grinned. "Did you hear that, McCoy?"

Eglé nodded. "We're going to get your wife back."

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><p>Fredrick slammed open the door and stormed down the corridor, his face dark and calculating. He kicked open a door to his right. "Is it ready yet?" he demanded.<p>

The men in the room shook their heads. "Not for a while, sir. We have to pinpoint and secure the location."

Fredrick snarled. "Well, hurry up! I need it done within the next hour, or Boss'll be mad! And if he gets mad, one of you will die!" He slammed the door shut and headed further down the corridor, walking straight to the door at the end. He dodged through the various workers, pushing some to the side, as he approached the door and burst in.

Ziva sleepily opened her eyes when she heard the door slamming against the wall and stared up at him in shock as he stormed over. "What the…"

He reached down and grabbed her by her collar, pulling her close to his face. "Who did you talk to?"

Ziva just stared at him in shock. "Wh-wh-what?"

"Who did you talk to?" he demanded. "Why are there two NCIS agents in my building?"

A small smile appeared and disappeared on Ziva's face quickly. "I spoke to no one. I did not even know they were here."

His eyes narrowed at her slightly before he dropped her.

She winced as she fell on her back, which happened to be incredibly sore due to hours of sitting on concrete flooring as well as how far she was in her pregnancy… and labour.

"Where is Walker?" he growled.

Ziva just glared at him. "I do not know what you are—" She gasped as she felt a contraction rip through her abdomen and cried out in pain.

Fredrick just stared at her passively. "I saw you speak to him earlier. Where is he?"

Ziva just shook her head.

Fredrick frowned. "You don't know, huh?" He reached down and grabbed her by her jaw tightly, gripping her. He leaned forward so that his lips were right beside her ear. "I know that your little family is inside the building, and I know exactly how to torture them the most. Now, tell me where Walker is, and I may spare your family's life."

Ziva managed to glare at him through her pain. "I… have… no… clue," she ground out.

Fredrick glared at her for a couple of seconds more before dropping her and turning to leave the room. He slammed the door behind himself and stormed into the room he had entered just before entering Ziva's room.

The men in the room jumped and turned to face Fredrick.

"Get the car ready, now," he ordered. "We need to keep those agents away from her until Eli David fulfills our wishes."

The men nodded before quickly getting the car ready, making phone calls and setting up arrangements.

Fredrick smiled. Eli David was going to pay for what he did to this family…

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><p>Tony looked around as he and Eglé followed Walker down one of the many corridors in the building, to where he assumed Ziva was being held. The corridors all looked the same, with the same pale walls and the same grey concrete floors, with the same barred and locked doors lining the walls. There was no way he and Eglé would have been able to find their way here on their own.<p>

Walker pressed himself close to one of the walls.

Eglé frowned as she copied him. "What are you doing?"

"I've snuck around this place before," he whispered. "There should be guards right around the corner. They don't usually concentrate, but you should never doubt them."

Tony raised an eyebrow. "How old _are_ you?" he whispered as they began to sneak past the corner.

"Eighteen. Nineteen in a couple of weeks," Walker explained. "I've been working here ever since I was twelve, because the gang wanted me involved at a young age." He snorted lightly. "I've always hated it here – the way they treat the prisoners, and how they take revenge. It disgusts me."

Tony gave a small smile. "You'd make one heck of a cop."

Walker's eyebrows rose. "You think so? I mean, I'm going to college soon, and I really have no specific field I want to go into yet, but you think I should go into criminology?"

Eglé nodded. "I agree with DiNozzo. You have a strong sense of what is right and wrong."

Walker gave a small smile. "Thanks." He led them down another corridor once they'd passed the guards. "They should be near here…"

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><p>Ziva frowned as she heard the door open. She'd only just about managed to fall asleep, and now someone was coming to wake her up?<p>

Fredrick grabbed the pregnant woman by the arm and hauled her into a standing position.

Ziva frowned. "Wha—"

"We're leaving, Israeli woman," Fredrick said before pulling Ziva out into the corridor.

Ziva stumbled along obediently, although she had no idea where they were headed. If her assumptions were correct, they were running from something. Something dangerous to Fredrick… and maybe beneficial to her. "What is going on?"

"We've got a break-in – a security breach."

"Ah." She tried to pull back. "Let go!"

Fredrick growled. "Do not make this any harder than it needs to be, Israeli!" He tugged on her arm and tried to pull her forward.

Ziva struggled to hold her ground. "Let me go! I do not want to be here!" she yelled.

Fredrick growled and pulled her close to him, covering her mouth with his hand. "Shut up, you crazy woman!"

Ziva growled and bit his hand. "Leave me alone you stupid—"

That was when the alarms went off.

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><p>Tony winced when he heard the alarms go off. Eglé, however, jumped six feet into the air.<p>

Walker grimaced. "And there goes the alarm…"

Tony looked around him. "How long do we have?" he asked.

"They'll be getting her out of the building now…" Walker muttered.

"Then let's get moving," Eglé urged the other two. "We need to get Ziva and get out as soon as possible."

Walker nodded. "Let's go." He headed down another one of the corridors, breaking into a run in order to reach Ziva in time.

Tony and Eglé followed, hot on his heels. Tony's chest was heaving as he raced to keep up with Walker. He hadn't exactly kept his fitness at the best of levels when he and Ziva had had the kids, although he found it was fairly average.

As he and Eglé rounded a corner behind Walker, they heard him exclaim angrily, "It's too late!"

Tony froze, and his eyes widened when he saw the next cell they had decided to keep his wife in. "Those no good idiots…"

Eglé looked around. "This room has been recently deserted. It is not too cold in here. If it had been deserted for longer, it would be at least a little colder."

Walker grinned. "Then we can catch them. I have an idea of where they're headed!"

"Then lead us there now!" Tony demanded.

Walker nodded quickly and led them out of the room and further down the corridor, towards the underground carpark that they had built there. "Fredrick would want a quick and easy way to get Ziva out of the building. There should be an underground carpark in this—"

"_Let go of me!_"

Tony's eyes widened. "That's Ziva! That's her voice!"

Walker frowned. "Are you sure?"

"I've been married to her for four years. Of course I'm sure."

Walker nodded. "Then she's just around this corner…"

"_Quit moving, Israeli filth!_"

"_No! Ahhh!_"

Tony could recognize that scream anywhere. He'd heard that scream many times before in the last five years of them being together. "Shit…"

"What?" Eglé asked. "What is wrong?"

"She's in labour…" Tony muttered. He looked around the corner. "Crap…"

Walker looked around the corner and his eyes widened. "How do you want to get her?"

"Grab her and run."

Eglé frowned. "How do we do that?"

"Run in, grab her, run out."

"But…"

Suddenly, a man appeared from behind Fredrick. "The car is ready."

Fredrick nodded. "Good. Let's go."

Ziva growled and bit his hand forcing him to let go. "_Help!_"

Tony looked over at Eglé and nodded. Eglé nodded back, and pulled out her gun. _1… 2… 3…_

"Let her go and put your hands up!" Tony yelled over the sound of the alarms as he came out from behind the corner.

Fredrick's eyes widened before he turned to the man. "Get him!"

Ziva's eyes widened. "Tony!"

Tony pointed his gun at Fredrick's forehead. "Try me, Freddie."

Fredrick growled. "Now!"

The man behind him fired a couple of bullets at Tony's head, causing him to duck out of the way quickly to avoid being shot at. Eglé jumped out of her hiding spot and shot at the man, taking him down with two bullets.

By the time Tony got back up, Fredrick was already dragging Ziva away from them. "Help!" she cried out. "Tony!"

Tony got up. "Ziva!"

"Go after her!" Eglé commanded. "We can handle the rest!"

Tony shook his head. "Eglé, if those men get you—"

"I'll come after you straight after I check on this guy!"

Tony nodded before racing after his wife and the kidnapper. He rounded the corner they had rounded and smirked when he saw Fredrick attempting to open a door with one hand. "A little trouble there, Freddie?"

Fredrick growled before opening the door and dragging Ziva outside. "Try and catch me now, Anthony DiNozzo…"

Tony ran after them, pulling his gun out and aiming at Fredrick's head. His shots went wide, bullets zooming over Fredrick's head.

Fredrick laughed. "You do not seem to have the best of aim, DiNozzo."

Tony growled and shot at Fredrick again, catching him in the foot.

Fredrick yelled out in pain, letting go of Ziva's arm and falling to the floor.

Ziva stumbled, falling to the ground.

Tony shot a couple of more times at Fredrick, putting a couple more bullets in his legs before running over to Ziva. "Zee! Zee!"

Ziva cried out in pain as she felt her contraction get stronger.

Tony knelt down beside his wife, bring her close to him. "Zee, what's wrong?"

"Contraction," she ground out. "Very close… hospital now."

Tony's eyes widened and he nodded, helping Ziva up before looking around. "Hey… we're not too far from where we came in…"

"_Tony!_"

Tony turned to see Eglé running over to him and he smiled. "Eglé! We need help!"

Walker was hot on her heels, breathing deeply and holding a gun loosely in his hand. He'd taken it from the man Eglé had shot, and now he was making sure that they were safe as they made their way out of the compound.

Tony smiled. "Eglé, remember when we came in and saw that staircase to our right?"

Eglé nodded.

Tony pointed up to where a staircase stood in the far corner. "That's the staircase, right? We should've come in from that direction?"

Eglé looked over to the staircase and smiled. "I think it's the staircase we saw."

Walker smiled. "Then we have our exit! Let's go!" He led the way over to the exit whilst Eglé and Tony helped Ziva along, making sure that they were prepared for any attack.

They were halfway up the stairs before they started panicking.

"Nearly home free…" Tony grinned as he helped his wife up the stairs. They were so close to getting out of the compound…

Ziva cried out in pain as she felt another contraction hit her, this one harder than the rest. Her legs buckled under the pain, causing her to hang onto Tony to hold herself up. Her body was weaker than usual, causing her to grip onto Tony tighten to stay up.

Tony gripped his wife. "Zee, Zee, it's alright."

Ziva felt tears come to her eyes and took shallow breaths.

"Remember, Lamaze breathing? Breathe, Ziva, breathe."

Ziva did as she was told and felt the pain lessen slightly before things just went downhill.

Her waters broke.

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	44. Waters Breaking and Rides to Hospital

**Here's your next chapter, readers! It's pretty short, but I hope you enjoy it!**

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><p>Ziva gasped as she felt the warm liquid dribble down her legs. "T-T-Tony…"<p>

Tony frowned at his wife's gasp. "Ziva? Zee! What's wrong? What's going on?" He clutched her hands tightly. "Ziva?"

Ziva took deep breaths as she looked up at her husband. "M-my… my waters broke…"

The other three froze. "W-w-what?"

Ziva glared at them. "You heard me."

Tony was scared. "Okay, okay – we need to get her to a hospital…"

Eglé tapped into her earphone. "Gibbs? Gibbs? We have an emergency."

Tony was busy calming his wife down when he heard crackling in his ear. "_Yeah, what is it, McCoy?_"

"It's Ziva," Eglé explained.

"_Is she alright?_"

"Yeah, but—"

"_Then what is it? We need you out of there as soon as possible—_"

"We need the cars ready as soon as possible, Boss," Tony interrupted. "As soon as we get out, Ziva needs to get to the hospital. Her waters have broken."

There was a pause on the other side. "_Got it, Tony,_" came McGee's voice. "_Gibbs has gone to get the car ready now._"

Tony smiled. "Good." He helped Ziva the rest of the way up the stone staircase before practically carrying her over to the Charger waiting for them, Eglé and Walker following not far behind. As they neared the car, McGee came out of it, smiling.

"Tony!"

Tony gave a huge sigh of relief when he saw the younger agent. "Where's Gibbs?" he asked.

McGee pointed to the other Charger waiting with them, which had two agents sitting in it just in case anything went wrong. "In that one."

"Right. Walker, you get in that one. Agent McCoy will escort you—"

"No."

Tony turned to Eglé. "'No'?"

"I trust Walker can get back to NCIS with Gibbs. If there are any agents going with him, then it shall be McGee."

McGee's eyebrows rose. "Me?"

Tony thought about it. "Are you sure, McCoy?"

"Is McGee a fast driver?"

"He gets sick when someone drives fast."

"Exactly. He should go back with Gibbs. I will drive you and Ziva to the hospital."

Ziva frowned at her. "Are you sure?"

Eglé chuckled. "I have had two children, but it does not mean I'm always a careful driver. I like to get to places in the shortest amount of time possible."

Tony grinned. "Sounds like someone familiar…" he said, looking over at his wife with a smirk on his face.

Ziva glared at him. "Just hurry up and get me to the hospital…" she growled.

"Right. Hospital." Tony rushed Ziva over to the Charger that McGee had come out of. "Come on, McCoy!"

Eglé nodded. "McGee, take care of Walker." She smiled at Walker. "Don't worry – McGee will take good care of you at NCIS."

Walker nodded. "Got it." He headed over to the car where Gibbs was waiting and climbed into the backseat, trying to keep as far away from the grey haired man as possible when he was met with an ice cold glare as he squeezed himself between the two other agents.

McGee followed the young man over. "We'll see you later, guys." He smiled at Ziva and Tony. "Good luck you two!"

Tony smiled out of the window. "Thanks, McGee!"

Eglé smiled as she got into the car. "You two ready?" she asked as she started the car. "Yes? Okay. Let's go!" She put her foot down on the accelerator and grinned as the car sped out of and away from the warehouse.

Tony gripped the door handles tightly, his face paling slightly. "What is it with you women and _speeding_?" he yelled as Eglé rounded a corner, the screeching tires loud against his ears.

"There is nothing wrong with speeding if you are in a hurry!" Ziva exclaimed. She gripped her stomach tightly and gasped in pain when she felt another contraction, this one even more painful than the rest.

Tony looked over at his wife worriedly. He turned to Eglé. "How far left?"

"Not too far hopefully—" Eglé started, only to swear angrily in Lithuanian.

Tony frowned. "I would ask what language that is, but what's wrong?" he asked, suddenly worried.

"Who fills the tank in this thing?" she asked.

"McGee. Why?"

"It's empty!"

Tony's eyes widened. "You mean—"

The car suddenly gave out, the engine stopping and the car rolling forward until it came to a stop in front of a small store about a mile or two from the hospital. The passengers in the car growled out of frustration.

"McGee…" Tony growled lowly, smashing his fist into the car seat in front of him.

Eglé just sighed. "We should roll the car out of the road. It is a danger to everyone else."

Tony nodded and opened the car door before walking to the back of the car. "You ready, McCoy?"

Eglé nodded. "Push!"

Tony pushed the car in front of him, giving a satisfied smile when it finally started rolling again. He continued to push the car as Eglé steered it, and finally let it come to a stop in a loading bay just outside the store.

Eglé popped her head out of her window and smiled at him. "We're good now! You can come into the car again!"

Tony smiled and climbed back into the car. "Hey," he turned to his wife, "how are you doing?"

Ziva was taking deep breaths. "Tony, call an ambulance. Now."

Tony's smile dropped and his eyes widened. "Why, honey?"

"The baby is coming."

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	45. Labour in Cars

**Okay, readers, I think I've nearly finished this sequel... but I've definitely got more coming up next! I don't think the story's finished yet...**

**Anyway, Enjoy this chapter, readers!**

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><p>"Are you sure?"<p>

"I can feel it, Tony! How could I not be sure?"

Tony took deep breaths to calm himself down. "Okay, okay…" He turned to Eglé. "What should we do?"

Eglé looked just as scared. "How should I know? I've only ever been in _her_ position before!"

Ziva was taking deep breaths, even though she was panicking. "Hello? I can hear everything you're saying!"

Eglé frowned slightly as she tried to remember something. "This comes up in training or something, doesn't it?"

Tony frowned. "That was so far back… I probably wasn't listening anyway."

Eglé continued to frown. "Okay, uh…" She snapped her fingers when she remembered. "Towels! And scissors! We need those!"

Tony smiled. "Got it! Anything else?"

"You might want to get her a couple of stress balls whilst you're at it."

He paled slightly, but nodded. "I'll be back in about five minutes." He jumped out of the car and pulled out his wallet.

"Hurry back!" Eglé called out as she moved to the back seat to comfort Ziva.

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><p>Tony grabbed the towels off the shelf. He didn't care if he took more than enough – they were only <em>towels<em>. He grabbed a pair of scissors, some large bottles of water and a couple of stress balls before racing to the counter.

The man at the counter stared at him with a confused look on his face. "What you buyin' all this crap for?"

Tony stared at him with a blank look on his face. "None of your business. Scan so I can pay."

The man rolled his eyes at Tony and scanned the items. "Sure. That'll be $70."

"$70?" Tony asked incredulously. He pulled out his wallet and handed over the correct amount of money. "Jeez, you're not afraid to rip people off, are you?"

The man glared at Tony. "Well, whad'ya expect? We're in a recession, man! We gots to earn a living somehow!"

Tony just stared at him. "I know… I've got a wife and three kids, and I'm a Special Agent."

"Man, that must be tough, goin' out there and riskin' your life just t' get food on your table."

Tony nodded. "Well, I must be going. My wife's in the car giving birth, and we're out of fuel."

"What?" The man grabbed his phone. "I'll call an ambulance. You just go be with your wife!"

Tony nodded and grabbed the items before pausing. "Hey, cashier-guy?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you have a wife and kids?"

The man just smiled. "You best go check on your wife now. Otherwise, that baby's gonna be here before you get back."

"Right!" Tony raced out of the store.

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><p>"Where have you been?" Eglé snatched the items off Tony. "Ziva is in pain and you are taking a leisurely stroll?"<p>

Tony winced. "Sorry…"

Eglé sighed as she ran back over to the car, opening the door quickly. "Ziva, how are you holding up?"

"As much as a woman in labour about to give birth can hold up," Ziva muttered before crying out as she felt another contraction.

Eglé nodded and climbed back into the car, preparing the towels on the car seat. "Okay, Ziva, you can lie along the seat now."

Ziva nodded and moved slightly to lie much more comfortably before she gasped. "Tony… the baby…"

Tony's eyes widened. "What? What about it?"

"I can feel the head."

Eglé's eyes widened. "Well, I believe we must get this show on the road, then."

"Push, Ziva, push!"

Ziva ground her teeth and gripped the edges of the chairs as she pushed, sweat pouring off her forehead. Her body felt weak, and she was tired. She wasn't sure she could continue this. "Tony…"

"Don't you dare tell me you're gonna give up now, Ziva," Tony growled. "We've gotten this far. You can't back down now."

Ziva leaned her sweat covered head against the window, her hair matted to her forehead. Her back hurt, she felt weak from the lack of food and the amount of stress she'd been put under for the past week or so had taken its toll on her. "Tony… I don't think I can…"

"Ziva! I can see the head!" Eglé exclaimed. "Just keep pushing, and we should have this baby here soon!"

Ziva blinked heavily. "Tony… I have not eaten well for days… I feel weak…"

Tony just pushed Ziva's hair out of her face. "I know, honey, I know. The ambulance is on its way – it may have a little trouble due to traffic, but it's coming, Ziva."

Ziva nodded, still feeling weak. "Okay… I think I can do this…" She took a couple of deep, calming breaths. "Okay… I can do this…"

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><p>"Push, Ziva!"<p>

Ziva pushed, gripping the chair tightly.

Tony grinned. "The head's out!"

Ziva smiled with relief. "Thank goodness…"

"Okay, one big push!"

It wasn't long before the cries of a newborn baby were heard in the average-sized NCIS company car.

And then the sound of nearing ambulances was heard, and flashing lights could be seen in the distance.

Tony grinned. "Ziva! The ambulances are almost here!" When he heard no response from his wife, he turned to her. "Ziva?"

But her eyes had closed.

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	46. Hospital Visits, and Friendly Reunions

**Hey, readers! I hope you've all had a good holiday.**

**Anyway, before you read on, I just want to tell you that my updates are going to slow down dramatically from now on. Since I'm heading back to school, and I'm in my second GCSE year, I've got to really study hard and cut down on my writing time. Which means I'll only be writing on the weekends. So I'll only be updating once a month, twice at the most.**

**I'm really sorry about that, but I hope you'll forgive me.**

**Anyway, read on, readers!**

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><p>Five women ran into the hospital ward, three of them being pregnant. They headed straight over to the man sitting in one of the plastic waiting chairs, who had his head in his hands.<p>

"Tony!" one of them called out, and Tony looked up to see the women running towards him.

He smiled. "Hey, Andy, Katie, Mukta, Rebecca and Abby. What are you doing here?" He narrowed his eyes at Katie and Abby. "Especially you two. Aren't you due soon?"

Katie just frowned at Tony. "Our best friend is in _hospital_, and you're asking us about when _we're_ due?"

Abby continued to stare at the man she had come to think of as a brother incredulously. "You've got to be kidding, Tony! Ziva and I are too close!" She head slapped him. "What gave you the stupid idea that I would _not_ come to visit her in the hospital? Just because I'm pregnant doesn't render me incapable of doing anything!"

Tony just stared at her wide-eyed before giving a small smile. "Sorry, Abs." He rubbed the back of his head tenderly. "Jeez, Abs, you've got a swing on ya."

Abby couldn't help smiling at him. "Same old Tony."

Andy chuckled lightly. "So which room is Ziva's?" she asked curiously.

Tony pointed to the room just across from where he was sitting. "That one. I think she may be resting in there, but she should be awake."

The women nodded before turning to the room and opening the door. Mukta popped her head in first.

"Ziva?"

The Israeli woman looked up from where she sat on the bed, hooked up to different IVs and monitors. She smiled at her five friends as they entered the room. "Hello."

Rebecca waddled up to the bed and hugged her. "I'm glad you're back!" she said.

Ziva smiled as she hugged Rebecca back. "So am I."

Katie took a seat beside the bed. "How are you, then?" she asked, looking over at her friend as the others entered the room behind her.

Ziva smiled. "I could be better, but I am doing quite well." She sighed. "I am just tired…"

"Tony said you passed out just before the ambulances arrived, straight after the baby was delivered," Andy explained. "Did you lose too much blood?"

"It was exhaustion," Mukta said. "She was kidnapped, remember?"

"Good point."

"How's the baby, though?" Andy asked. "Is he healthy?"

Ziva nodded. "One of the nurses came in here earlier on to tell me how he was. He is healthy, but they are keeping him in pediatrics for a few days to keep an eye on him."

Andy smiled. "That's good. I have a friend that works in pediatrics, and I know she'll be able to take good care of him."

Ziva nodded. "That is good."

The group sat in a comfortable silence for a little while, loving the fact that they were all together again as friends, before Katie spoke up.

"I'm really glad that Tony and the team found a lead on the case," she said. "I don't know what we would've thought if you'd gone missing for months with the baby and we heard nothing from you…"

Mukta nodded in agreement. "I was really worried when they told me that they had nothing on the case – especially as little AJ, TJ and Kate kept on asking repeatedly when you would come home…"

Ziva smiled. "Well, I believe it was thanks to our new profiler."

Rebecca frowned. "You have a new profiler? What's her name?"

"Special Agent McCoy."

Andy frowned. _That name rang a bell…_ "McCoy, you say?"

"Yes…" Ziva frowned as well. "Why, does it ring a bell?"

Katie turned to Andy. "So you recognize the name too?"

"Yeah… but who…?"

Suddenly, the door opened, and Eglé walked in holding a takeout box with chopsticks in a plastic bag. "Mrs DiNozzo, I have some lunch ordered for you. It was ordered by your husband…" She froze when she saw the other women in the room.

Ziva gave her a small smile. "Thank you, Special Agent McCoy."

Mukta's eyes widened in shock. "E-Eglé?"

Eglé's face broke into a smile when she recognized four of the other five. "Mukta! Rebecca! Katie! Andrea!"

Mukta ran over and hugged her tightly. "Eglé! I haven't seen you since you got that new job in DC two years ago!"

Andy nodded, a grin on her face. "We've been looking for you everywhere, Eglé!"

"We've missed you!" Katie exclaimed.

Rebecca just smiled, ever the sensible one. "How is your family, then, Eglé?" she asked. "Healthy as always?"

Eglé grinned and nodded. "As always."

Ziva just watched their interaction with interest. When they had finished, she spoke up, "I did not know you five were friends."

Mukta nodded. "We all went to school together. We were a group of best friends and we always hung out with each other."

"Ah, that is nice," Ziva commented.

Abby had stayed silent during the whole exchange, Ziva noticed, so she turned to the woman.

"What is wrong, Abby?" she asked.

Abby jumped slightly. "It's just the fact that they've all been friends for years…"

"But we have been friends for a little while, Abby," Ziva pointed out. "We have been friends since before the twins were born."

Abby shrugged. "That's true."

Eglé handed Ziva her lunch. "I hope you enjoy it."

Ziva chuckled. "Well, if Tony ordered it then I am sure I will."

* * *

><p>Hours later, Ziva found herself walking towards the pediatrics ward on her own. She had managed to convince the nurses to let her see her young son, so she was making her way to see him. The occasional doctor had given her the odd look as she walked along, seeing as she was in a hospital gown and still had the receptor for the IV tube in her hand, but everyone else seemed to ignore her.<p>

She opened the door to the ward and walked in quietly, hearing the sound of sleeping children and crying babies all around her. Her heart panged as she remembered that she had her own young children at home, but she walked on. "Hello?" she called out quietly.

A doctor was just walking past as she said so and she stopped. She had strawberry blonde hair, which was almost red, and kind, hazel eyes. "Hello! Can I help you?"

Ziva nodded at the woman. "Yes. I am looking for a Doctor Martino?"

The doctor smiled. "That's me! Doctor Amie Martino at your service, ma'am."

Ziva smiled back, even though she hated being called "ma'am". "It is nice to meet you Dr Martino."

Amie seemed to observe her for a second before smiling. "You must be Ziva DiNozzo!" she exclaimed, recognizing the dark eyes. She led Ziva down the corridor to the baby area of the ward. "Your son is little Timothy Donald-James DiNozzo, am I correct?"

Ziva nodded as she followed Amie. "Are you British?" she asked suddenly as they walked into the baby room. "You sound British."

Amie nodded. "Uh-huh." She walked over to baby Timothy's crib and picked him up, handing him to Ziva. "Here you go."

Ziva smiled and took her son from Amie's outstretched arms. "Thank you." She cradled her son close to her chest, kissing his forehead tenderly. "Hello, little Timothy. I hope you are well." She gave a small smile. "Mommy misses not being able to see you… even though you have just been born…"

Little Timothy just fell asleep against her chest, his dark eyes fluttering closed. His dark hair, much like Ziva's, was tucked under his hat.

Ziva smiled down at him. "Is he healthy?" she asked Amie.

Amie nodded. "Yep, perfectly healthy. He can go home as soon as the doctors are prepared to let you out."

Ziva smiled at Amie. "Thank you so much…"

Amie smiled back. "No problem. It's my job."

Ziva continued to rock her son back and forth before she had an idea. "Uh, Dr Martino?"

Amie looked up from where she had been checking on another baby. "Yes, Mrs DiNozzo?"

Ziva frowned slightly. "You… uh… don't happen to know someone with the surname Alchel, do you? I believe she works in this ward?"

Amie frowned slightly. "Alchel… Alchel…" She smiled. "Oh, you mean Andrea Alchel? Yeah! She's an old friend of mine! We went to school together! Why?"

Ziva smiled. "Next time you see her, do you think you could thank her for me?"

Amie smiled and nodded. "Sure."

Ziva smiled at her before kissing her son on the forehead and holding him close. "I guess I must go now…" She sighed. "The doctors will start looking for me soon."

Amie nodded. "I guess you should…" She carefully took Timothy back from Ziva's arms and placed him in his crib. "You should visit him as often as you can. I might even allow you to breastfeed him sometime."

Ziva smiled. "That would be nice…"

"Mrs DiNozzo!"

Ziva sighed. "I must go…" She smiled at Amie. "Thanks again, Dr Martino."

"Please, call me Amie," Amie corrected. "Dr Martino seems too formal."

Ziva nodded. "Okay, thanks Amie." She waved as she headed for the door. "I shall see you around?"

Amie nodded. "Bye, Mrs DiNozzo!"

Ziva smiled. "Bye! And please, call me Ziva!"

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	47. Explosions For Family

**Here's the next chapter, readers! I think this is the penultimate chapter in this part of the SSAOST series, so I'll try to get the next part up as soon as I can. However, with school and everything, I might not be able to do it for a couple of months or so... so please don't get worried if I don't post it up for a while! I'm definitely going to post up the next installment of this series!**

**Anyway, enjoy this chapter, readers! Read on!**

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><p>Tony sighed as he started the car, turning briefly to his passengers. "Are you sure that we <em>have<em> to do this?"

Eli nodded from his seat diagonally behind Tony. "It will prevent our family from getting attacked again."

Tony sighed. "It feels a little… evil…"

"Yes, well, if you do not want to help us you may leave," Rosalina pointed out from her seat directly behind the driver.

Tony narrowed his eyes at them in the rear view mirror before turning to Gibbs, who sat in the passenger seat beside him.

Gibbs sighed. "I feel no better about this than you do, DiNozzo."

Tony raised an eyebrow. "But…?"

"But you do what you have to do to protect your family. Understood?"

Tony nodded. "Yes, Boss." He put the car into drive and sped off, heading towards the location that the GPS was pointing out.

When the group of four arrived there, Tony was surprised to find where they were. He recognized the abandoned warehouse scene, with the grey walls and the cold concrete floors…

"What are we doing back here?" he demanded, turning to Eli.

"I have some… unfinished business to attend to," Eli explained to Tony, climbing out of the car and pulling out a handgun from his pocket. He loaded it with a magazine and secured it firmly.

Rosalina followed him out swiftly, doing the same thing as her husband but instead pulling the handgun from her cleavage and putting it back once she had loaded it with the magazine. When she noticed Tony's confused look, she answered with, "My husband's business is my business."

Tony sighed. "I… I'm not really sure I want to know what you're going to do… but I don't want to know."

"That is fine by us." Eli and Rosalina left the Special Agents, Tony and Gibbs, in the car, heading into the compound to complete their 'unfinished business'.

It was about an hour later when Eli and Rosalina returned to the car, running away from the compound. They weren't being chased, but the sight of them running put Tony on edge.

"What's going on?" he demanded as his father-in-law and step-mother-in-law climbed back into the car. "What the hell, Eli?"

"Drive," Eli commanded.

"What?" Tony was confused.

Gibbs turned back. "Eli, what the hell is going on?"

"Just drive!" Rosalina yelled, forcefully turning Tony's head so that with was facing the windshield.

Tony sparked the car and quickly put it into drive, the wheel squealing as he sped off towards D.C. and the Navy Yard.

The car was a mere 50 yards away when they heard the explosion. Tony's eyes widened as he floored the accelerator, speeding away from the exploding compound. Once they reached D.C., he took his foot off the accelerator and stepped on the brakes, ignoring the honks from cars behind him. He turned in his seat at the same time that Gibbs did, and the pair glared at the couple in the backseats.

"What the hell did you get us into?" Gibbs snarled.

"You do what you have to do to protect family," Eli said. "Our family is now safe."

Tony's eyes widened. "You didn't…"

"I do not care for my family anymore," Rosalina explained. "This whole gang business is of no use to me. They are of more use to me dead than alive."

"You're sick…" Tony muttered.

"My family wanted to murder my daughter!" Rosalina exclaimed. "They are not my family! Now drive."

"Murdering them doesn't solve anything," Gibbs pointed out. "You'll feel guilt for the rest of your life."

"Not when they did not do anything to help you," she answered. "Now take us back to the hotel. We have nothing more to speak about."

Tony nodded before starting to drive again slowly.

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><p>"Ziva?" Tony walked into the pediatrics ward and smiled when he saw Ziva cradling their new baby boy.<p>

Ziva looked up at him and smiled. "Hello, Tony."

Tony walked over to her and wrapped an arm around his wife's waist, looking over her shoulder at the baby boy in her arms. "How's Timothy doing?" he asked.

"He is doing well." She looked up at him. "Where did you go? You look stressed."

He frowned. "Stressed? Why would you think that?"

Ziva narrowed her eyes at him. "What did you do?"

"Nothing, honest!"

"Stop lying to me."

Tony sighed. "You do what you have to do to protect family, right?"

Ziva nodded slowly. "Yes… what did you do?"

"I did nothing! I was forced to do it! I swear!"

Ziva was instantly put on guard. "What were you forced to do?"

Tony took a deep breath. "Your parents forced me to drive them to the compound."

"They _what_?!"

Tony winced. "They forced me, and I did it. When they got to the compound, they went in with guns, and came back out and told me to drive. As we were driving away, the compound blew up—"

"_What_?!" She looked horrified.

Tony held his arms up in defence. "I didn't do anything! And neither did Gibbs!"

"Gibbs was there _as well_?!"

He winced. That was probably the wrong thing to say… "Ziva, Ziva, listen to me."

Ziva had put Timothy in his crib and was hyperventilating. "What?"

He pulled her into a hug. "Ziva, they did it to protect you – to protect us," he explained. "You do what you have to do to protect family."

Ziva nodded into his shoulder, trying to breathe. "We do what we have to do to protect family."

He smiled and kissed her softly on the lips. "Because we love our family."

Ziva nodded. "Tony… I love you."

Tony smiled. "I love you too."

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><p><strong>Review!<strong>


	48. Perfect Family

**And here we are, readers! The last chapter for this story in the series... the sequel should be up when I get round to posting it! Thank you all for reading this story, and I hope that you enjoy this final chapter! I'm sorry if it sucks or doesn't meet your expectations!**

**Anyways, read on!**

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><p>"Come on, you two!"<p>

"Coming, daddy!"

"Anthony! Come here now! Maria has to do up your shoelaces!"

"I coming Auntie 'Ria!"

"Caitlin! How many times have I told you not to leave your dolls in the middle of the corridor?"

"Sorry, daddy!"

"Tali, why is your cuddly toy not in your room? I don't want to have to go looking for it again!"

"Sorry, daddy!"

Tony sighed and rubbed his face tiredly. Taking care of three children was hard. "We're never going to get to see Ziva at the hospital by this rate…"

Maria smiled at Tony as she knelt down to tie AJ's shoelace. "Don't worry, Tony. Visiting hours don't end for ages. We have enough time to see baby Timmy."

AJ grinned. "Yay! Baby Timmy!"

Tony nodded. "Okay, okay… I know… it's just, these three stress me out more than any case."

"They only stress you out because there hasn't been one moment where you've been the fun old daddy that they're used to. Not since Ziva got kidnapped."

Tony paused. She had a point… "I know… but I don't want to lose them. Well, I didn't. Now that they're safe, I don't know whether I can convert to my old self…"

"Sure you can!" Maria finished tying AJ's shoes. "Hey, who wants to play airplanes?"

AJ grinned. "Yay!" He turned to his father eagerly. "Airplanes, daddy?"

Tony chuckled before picking AJ up and placing him on his shoulders. "Remember what sounds an airplane makes?"

"Nyawwwwwwww!" AJ exclaimed, grinning.

Tony laughed before starting to run around the house with AJ on his shoulders. Just as he was running back into the corridor, Kate and TJ were descending the stairs and they stared at him in shock.

"Daddy? What are you doing?" Kate asked, ever the sensible one.

"Come on!" he exclaimed, giving himself a cartoon voice. "Let's go to the hospital to see mommy!"

The twins grinned before skipping after their father. "Yay!"

Maria chuckled as she watched the family walk out of the door and over to the car.

Yes, they were on the mend.

* * *

><p>"Mommy!"<p>

Ziva smiled as three of her four children ran into the room, bright smiles on their faces and their green eyes happy and excited. She knelt down and pulled them all in for a tight hug, happy tears starting to spill from her eyes. "My babies…"

Tony and Maria stood by the door, watching the interaction with smiles on their faces.

Ziva kissed all three of their foreheads. "How are my babies?"

TJ pouted. "I'm not a baby!"

Kate rolled her eyes at her sister. "You are sometimes."

"Well, so are you!"

Ziva sighed. "You have only just arrived to visit me, and you are already bickering? Remember what I said about bickering?"

The girls hung their heads. "That you don't like it."

"That is right."

AJ continued to grin up at his mother, ignoring the conversation she was having with his sisters. "Momma, momma, we see baby Timmy?"

Ziva smiled at her son. "Of course!" She got up and led the children over to a crib in the corner where baby Timothy was sleeping.

Tony leaned on the door. "You know, I'm glad we went through all this," he told Maria as he watched his family.

Maria frowned. "What? Why?"

Tony continued to watch as Ziva picked up the baby and knelt down so that the children could see him. "Because I don't think we've ever been closer."

Maria smiled as she watched the twins and AJ stare at the baby in awe. "You know what, I think you're right, Tony."

Tony smiled. "I'm glad you agree with me. There's just one thing."

"What's that?"

"No more kids."

Maria laughed. "Don't tell me, tell Ziva."

Tony chuckled. "Yeah, but no more kids. I can't deal with any more. Besides, at the moment, I think our family is perfect."

Maria nodded. "I agree." She watched as the kids reached over and carefully stroked Timothy's hair. She saw Kate gasp when Timothy grabbed her finger and held onto it tightly, his big brown eyes staring up at her.

"Just perfect."

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><p><strong>Okay, readers! That's all for this installment! Just leave me one last review!<strong>


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